Star Vs The Forces Of Evil: Keeping Your Promise
by LeviLemon
Summary: Following On From "Flowers And Stars"- Still feeling the effects of losing their friend the group try to keep their promise to live their lives. Everything seems to be looking up for all of our characters with new love, new dreams and new adventures but some things were left unsolved in the past and the true evil behind all they have faced is yet to be seen. The Story Continues...
1. Keeping Your Promise

**Keeping Your Promise**

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 **A/N: After the positive feedback from Flowers and Stars I have decided to continue the story for a sequel. This will focus on the future for the characters and the unanswered questions from the first part.**

 **Responses to Reviews in Flowers And Stars:  
**

 **Kerbolious: I'm really happy you enjoyed it and thank you for the support, I love RVB and am loving the mystery of the new season. It's probably sooner than you expected but the story continues and you'll be glad to know that meeting Tom's dad shall be a part of the story.  
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 **Fanguyperson: Thank you :) I tried to keep pace with the characters and sorta like in a tv show where you'd miss a lot of the stuff** **in between** **.**

 **Macky125: Thank you for your comment :) I'm glad you enjoyed it.**

 **Lerans: As I said in the PM this will be a continuation and will have some of the answers you wanted from the first part. If you still have things your unsure of I'll try to** **incorporate** **the answers into the story to make more sense.**

 **The song sung in the first part is inspired by that of Bill Cipher in Gravity Falls, I found a version on youtube where someone sings the whole song in a billish voice. It is great and the second half goes well with the song 'In Our Bedroom After The War'. :) Hope you enjoy.**

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The room was pitch black and empty except for the man lying on the floor. He sat up quickly and patted himself down checking his body.

"All still there at least". He brushed his hands through his red hair before rising to see a mirror. He used his illusion magic to make a light appear and stepped forward. He waved into it, with it literally mirroring his movements. He looked at his reflection straightening his tie he looked to see if everything was as he remembered when he noticed the reflection didn't copy him. He went to poke it when his reflection slapped his hand away.

 **"Are you done Jester?"** It rolled its red eyes at him before stepping through the mirror. It looked down at its form and frowned. With a wave of it's hand its appearance changed. It was now a beautiful young woman with long flowing red hair. Her red eyes made all the more piercing by her eye lashes. She sat down in a chair staring at the man.

 **"Well aren't you going to sit?"** He looked confused but shrugged taking a seat. He waved his hands to make something appear but nothing happened. He tried again but still nothing. He looked over at her as she sipped the tea in her hands.

 **"Not all working as it should do.. I suppose not, really."**

"Am I dead?"

 **"Yes"**

"Then why I am here?" Index of Knowledge looked down at his body. His clothes were the same as the day he had died. He had no injuries like he remembered and even looked through his skin and saw that Glossaryck's enchantments were gone.

 **"Well Index of Knowledge.. Or should i use your other name?"**

"Please do.."

 **"Well Dox A. Par.. You know full well that the whole Blood Moon scenario is a part time deal for me and that i have a full time responsibility, don't you?"** She asked this with some force as if it wasn't so much a question but an accusation.

"You.. You're the Goddess of Fate.. You only do the Blood Moon blessings to give those you favour a better fate.."

 **"You really did know! How marvellous! However did you find it out!? I'd erased all texts of my true existence from written record."** She was genuinely impressed. Out of all the Jester's she had chosen over the many hundred years this one amused her more than any other. He not only went about his role in the most unorthodox way but had given his role to another, something none had ever done before. She had watched him with as much interest as she had her champions.

"It was mainly a theory. In the deepest parts of Heckapoo's dimension i found a cave with drawings all over the walls. The drawings were old.. Even older than her and I know my Dad would have told me about them if he thought it connected to the Blood Moon in any way. But he didn't so I guessed he didn't know about them, meaning something before my father. It depicted an ancient symbol that i recognised as Fate and around it were drawings of men and woman dancing under a crescent red moon. I saw that there were two who were blessed and a keeper of their "blessing".. Their fate. The closest word that i could find was Jester and it seems I was right. You're Fate?" Dox rubbed his chin remembering the strange drawings.

 **"Remarkable.. Well yes I am a Goddess, you can just call me Fate. You see Dox, my lovely Jester, I am not the only god and the other gods were also watching you and my champions. The Goddess of Love and the God of War were particularly interested. They seemed fit to lecture me on not rewarding you for your efforts. I do not like being told i haven't done my part so I'm prepared to offer you one of two options.**

 **One, I can restore you to life and let you live out your days along side the champions.**

 **Or two, I can reincarnate you into a happier life, a blessed life with fate smiling down onto you."** In her hands Fate held up two images. One was of him, Kelly and Marco sleeping on a sofa 🛋 and the other a young boy with loving parents hugging him.

Dox smiled at the woman realising how amazing this offer was but..

"No can do I'm afraid Milady, I promised Marco to wait in the afterlife and hear about his life from him. I want to keep that promise and anyway I lived my life I don't need to do it again. Plus I feel like they have already grieved me and said their goodbyes to me, to go back now I would be insulting the feelings they overcame to say goodbye to me. So if possible I'd like an option 3. I want to be able to meet him again when his time comes, Kelly too." Dox wasn't sure what to expect from the Goddess but she simply lit up with the biggest most unsettling smile he had ever scene.

 **"You continue to amuse me.."** She clapped her hands and Dox found himself falling through the air. He landed on an arm chair and looked up. He was in his study inside the Parahouse.

 **"You can wait here, I've linked the TV to let you watch over him. I can't always watch over them when I need to so I will appoint you as the Guardian of the Blood Moon. If you feel like maybe that fate isn't on their side I want you to change their fate. You'll know what to do when the time comes."** Her voice flowed straight into his ear as he smiled at the TV.

"Thank you Milady but I do have one more question before you leave?"

 **"What is it Jester?"**

"Why did you help both Marcos, my one and the one from the dark dimension?" He waited patiently for a reply.

 **"I chose the existence known as Marco Diaz as one of my champions, that means every version of him. Good or Bad. I gave them both my aid and my affection. It was their choice to prove they were worth my blessing. The Marco of the future you came from did not have the help, love and support he needed at the right times to make the choice I truly expected of him. He chose to give into anger and hate letting rage consume him and murdering his equal, doing so doomed him to his final fate. Your intervention let the natural flow of things return. He followed your path, walking with Kelly beside him and Star and Tom behind him. He had all the support and guidance he needed.**

 **If you are wondering why Glossaryck of the future and present could not predict the future intervention with the other Marco it is because the light and dark dimensions are not supposed to co-exist. By bridging between them the other Marco changed fate. I have to warn you now that isn't supposed to be possible. Something, or someone created the bridge between the light and the dark and interfered in my fate. It's why I need you to watch over my champions while I try to find out what caused all of this to occur. Do your job and keep your promise."**

"Wait.. Someone else was behind all of it?"

Dox waited for a response but she was gone. Cursing to himself he started to think about what sort of being could break the rules and wishes of a Goddess and nothing came to mind. He just hoped whatever it was it wouldn't be an issue for his friends in the living. He stood up and walked through the house. It looked like he had left it. It was as if him, Marco and Kelly had just popped out for an adventure and they had returned. He walked to the front door and opened it to see a bricked up wall. He walked back down the corridor to a locked room. He pulled a key from his pocket and opened it up.

 _"Why is this door locked? It's the only one in this weird house of yours that isn't opened. I mean you even have that one door on the second floor that leads to the room full of teddy bears?"_

 _"Marco I thought i told you not to bring up the teddy bears?"_

 _"I just.. Anyway what's with this door?" Dox looked down at the boy and smile._

 _"It's something special, you'll find out one day. Anyway we better get going or Kelly will make us sorry for being late again to training" He ruffled the boys head and ran off with Marco following suit._

Dox smiled remembering the time he shared with the young man. He walked over to the only object in the room and pulled the cover off.

He couldn't stop himself from staring at it. A black Steinway Grand Piano. Along the side was gold engravings and white marble legs. He took a seat at the stool and ran his hand over the keys. They felt cold to touch. He cracked his knuckles and began to play. Once he had the rhythm going he started to sing.

"We'll meet again, Don't know where, don't know when,  
But i know we'll meet again some sunny day.  
Keep smiling through, just like you always do,  
Till the blue skies drive the dark clouds far away.

Would you please say "hello", to the folks that I know,  
Tell them I won't be long.  
They'll be happy to know, that as you saw me go,  
I was singing this song.

We'll meet again, Don't know where, don't know when,  
But i know we'll meet again some sunny day.  
We'll meet again, Don't know where, don't know when,  
Keep smiling through just like you always do,  
Till the blue skies drive the dark clouds far away

Would you please say "hello", to the folks that I know,  
Tell them I won't be long.  
They'll be happy to know, that as you saw me go,  
I was singing this song.  
We'll meet again, Don't know where, Don't know when,  
But I know we'll meet again some sunny day!". He stopped playing the piano and instead listened to the sounds of his tears hitting the keys and the silence that followed.

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Marco ran his hands across the keys and began to push down on them playing a small tune. He closed the lid, put back the cover and walked to the door. He smiled before flipping the light switch and locking the door.

A month had passed since the day he was destined to die and the Parahouse was finally repaired. Marco and Kelly had gone inside to find everything as they left it. The only room that wasn't as they remembered was Dox's Study. It was ruined in the fight against Darkco and when the pocket dimension was returned it had reset that room to its base settings. The two had walked in still somewhat expecting to see the man they admired sitting in his chair to find the room completely empty. Marco had to hold Kelly tight as she cried in his arms. They had been hoping to spend time there and remember him. After leaving her return to her room to unpack her stuff he had decided to check out the locked room to find that piano alone. He had no idea why that was so special for his mentor and made a mental note to ask Heckapoo and Glossaryck if they had any answers.

He headed to his room to unpack. In the month after the fall of the dark dimension and after Dox's funeral the group had sort of gone their separate ways. They all mostly kept in touch but they needed time.

Star and Tom put all their time and effort into rebuilding the Butterfly Kingdom. With the relief effort from the other kingdoms and much hard work the kingdom was back to normal shape with the royals taking the chance to extend the outer wall and build better living conditions for the lower classes. They had set in motion plans for the next 5 months and were preparing for the return of the others. Tom had spent some time in the various dimensions he visited to finalise the peace treaties established in the pursuit of Dox. He had worked hard to ensure that the treaties stood firm. Dox's name still hadn't been cleared as a villain and it was decided that due to the positive influence the news of his death had on the general public he would be remembered as a villain. Marco hadn't been happy with the decision but he knew more than anyone that Dox would happily be remembered as the villain he wasn't than the hero he was proven to be. Tom was successful and for the first time in the history of multiple dimensions peace was established without threat or worry. Star had continued her efforts for equality and thanks to both sides working together to survive and fortunately timed engagement announcement of Ruby and Professor Barnus she had managed to quell a lot of the stigma against Monster Kind.

Janna and Heckapoo ran off to go on an epic adventure through her dimension and no one had seen them in a month. Marco was incredibly worried that Janna might have either died of old age or turned immortal in Hpoo's dimension. They all agreed to meet the day after the Parahouse restored to decide what comes next. Unbeknownst to Marco, Janna had stolen the pendant Glossaryck had found to repel curses and it worked to negate the ageing effects of Heckapoo's dimension. The two had been on lifetimes worth of adventures togethers even lifetimes when they just lived ordinary lives. Janna had helped her with overcoming the loss of Dox and find peace with everything that happened. After the war Heckapoo was in a bad condition with the effects of dark energy magic eating away at her life force. She had Janna help her hide it from the others until they disappeared on their adventure. Janna stayed by her side and took care of her until she recovered several years later in her dimension. From there they got matching tattoo's, explored all of her dimension land and sea, ushered in a new age of prophecies and superstition in order to scare people. One lifetime they even opened up an orphanage named **'Each Their Own Paradox'** making it so no child should be abandoned for death. They eventually passed it onto the oldest of the children they raised and carried on their adventures. They did everything they could think of and everything they couldn't before returning to earth to spend the last of the month in Janna's house. They kept it secret from the others and just relaxed ready for what comes next.

Glossaryck had also left for a trip, the loss of Dox had hit him pretty hard and he needed some time to himself. After two weeks he had resurfaced and he had plans to open a magic school. To teach anyone who was willing to learn about magic. He promised private advanced lessons for Star, Marco, Janna and Kelly but he seemed to want to build a brighter future. Higgs was his first student and apparently she showed promise. Thanks to her countless efforts in the war and assisting Star and the people she was Knighted as part of a new group of Knights under Stars supervision. The Order of The Crescent Moon was to be a specialised group of knights to deal with the weird and worst of the problems Mewni faced. Star later explained that it would give them more freedom in their efforts. Marco was told he'd have to squire for a bit longer to "prove" to the people he was worthy but it was really just a way to give him some space. Kelly also was to be Knighted for her accomplishments in the war but like Marco she was given a condition to work for the castle for a while as a technicality. Janna, Heckapoo and Tom as members of the MHC already outranked Knights but they took the knighting anyway just to give the group some unity.

Marco and Kelly had actually spent the whole month apart, both with their families. They spoke every night and day never letting each other feel lonely. They needed the chill time and the time to reconnect with their loved ones.

Marco had enjoyed spending time with Alessandro, with him there they could take the suppressor off of him and Marco enjoyed watching the array of powers Alessandro had. He wasn't so sure that one time he'd got outside and started floating up into the sky like a helium balloon 🎈 being set free but Nachos had flown up and brought him back down. Angie and Rafael had loved having Marco home and were amazed at how much he had grown. He had always been a helpful boy but the pair would find themselves waking up to Marco cooking them breakfast. Apparently it was tradition in the Parahouse that each person cooked at least one meal and he'd been on breakfast duty last. He'd help tidy up before heading off to study and train. Marco had spoken to the school board and under the condition that he completes all his tests with at least 95% or higher he'd be able to graduate from high school early. He'd done it in a week with 100% on everything.

The school were so impressed they contacted a local college and persuaded them to allow Marco to take part in courses of his choice. He'd easily aced all his subjects he'd taken from modern science to history. With full marks and his college degree under his belt he was being scouted by all the top universities as a genius. He'd had to refuse for the time being saying that he wasn't ready with his research and had to finish his squireship. They had been hesitant to accept but he showed them some magic and talked about his research and they realised when he was ready for university he would change everything and they knew it so he was offered an unconditional place at every one.

His parents were so proud of him for finishing his education and when they asked what had driven him to want to do it all he'd told them that Dox had him studying for two months straight and then after that he'd set aside 2 hours a day to study. He had made it his mission to ensure that Marco could be self-sufficient on both Earth and Mewni. Doc had particularly focused on his earth education after becoming friends with his parents. They were so proud of Marco and thankful to the man they considered their guardian. Marco had given his parents the picture of himself, Kelly and Dox to put on the wall. They wanted to remember him and wanted Alessandro to know of him. Marco spent the remainder of his time on Earth rebuilding his friendships and bridges. He even returned to the dojo and earned his black belt much to Jeremy's disgust.

Kelly had gone home to see her parents and siblings. The moment she had stepped in front of the house her little twin brothers had both jumped onto her tackling her to the floor. Having heard of the war for Mewni and seeing the dark dimension above it they had feared for their sisters life. She reassured them that she was fine before going inside to meet with her parents. Their reactions were pretty similar. She had spent the whole day and night telling them everything that had happened from the sandwich beast to the funeral the day before. They listened attentively and ooh'd and ahh'd when Kelly had pulled out all her new exciting weapons. They comforted their daughter seeing how much hardship and loss she had gone through.

The next day they woke to loud banging outside only to see Kelly was building something. When asked about it she explained that she wanted to build a forge so that she could work from home and also so that her family could learn her techniques. They had always provided from mercenary jobs and it was actually in a guild that her parents had met. They were two of Mewni's most famous adventurers and it was on one of their missions from the Kingdom that Star had met Kelly. She hadn't really remembered the green haired girl as they were quite young but it left an impression on Kelly.

Over the month Kelly and her family bonded over the experience. Her father would take the boys to the quarry to find large rocks that Kelly could use and her and her mother would work out the schematics of the building and started the wood work. Together the five of them built the forge Kelly had envisioned. When it was done she set to teaching the others about forging weapons and enchanting. Her father had more experience with weapons so took to the forging while her mother was the source of the families magic and pocket dimensions so took to enchanting. Together they made their first sword as a family. It didn't exactly work out all that well but it meant a lot to all of them so they hung it in front of the forge.

When the time finally came for her to head out again her little brothers had ran up to Marco who had come to pick her up and told him to look after their sister. Her parents had hugged her and wished her good luck promising the next time she returned home they'd have the forge working wonders.

Marco and Kelly walked through a portal to the field they had first met Dox. They had sat down and faced the scene where everything started.

"It feels like it was just yesterday Marco, that we were running for our lives from our lunch.."

"I know Kells, it's strange.. If I could go back to the me that got kidnapped I don't think I'd know what to say.."

"I do.." Marco turned to her seeing a brilliant smile on her face. She hadn't taken her eyes off of the battlefield and didn't notice him staring.

"I'd tell the young versions of us to prepare themselves. To get ready for the start of the rest of their lives. For Love, for adventure, for highs and low. For meeting the best person they'll ever meet and for having the time of their life. For hardship and fatigue, for working out until you dropped. For studying until your head ached and for loving every single second of it. The year ahead of them will be the year they truly discover who they are and if they aren't sure they want it then they just need to let themselves be kidnapped as they'll know it soon enough". She turned to see Marco staring at her and blushed. The two stood up and cut a portal. Marco pulled the key from his neck and turned it in the portal.

 _"This is registered pocket dimension #650, code name "Parahouse"_

 _"Dimensional stability restored. Access to Dimension restored. Greetings 'Marco Diaz' and Kelly Diaz', Welcome Back."_ They both had smiled and held hands walking through the door.

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Marco looked up from the frying pan to see Kelly enter the room. She was wearing a red checked shirt and jeans, her black boots and her hair was tied up as it had been at Lava lake. She looked up at him and smiled.

"Your still cooking breakfast?" She raised her eyes before sitting at the counter opposite him.

"It was my turn, dinners on you if I remember and I figured we'd grab lunch at work from now on." He passed her a plate and loaded it with eggs and bacon. He caught the toast as it flew into the air and passed that too before taking a seat opposite her.

"Okay hotstuff, you excited to see everyone?" She tucked into her breakfast aware he was smiling at her do so.

"Yeah, it's been a month now and we haven't seen anyone. We have the next 5 months to finish our squireship and royal work before we can be knighted. Once we have that I will be able to start the process of introducing human medicine to Mewni and you can open your shop. That's if everything goes to plan.." She could sense worry coming through their connection. She reached forward and held his hand.

"Sorry Kelly, I'm just worried that everything we went through before.. That it's not over. I don't know why but I couldn't sleep last night thinking maybe we missed something." He started to eat his breakfast not realising she was thinking herself.

They finished their breakfast in silence and washed up. As they were on their way out she stopped him.

"Tonight come sleep in my bed with me, I think you'll feel better if I was there. Don't worry handsome I won't steal all the blanket and I don't snore. Just.. I don't like the idea of you alone not sleeping and if anything does come well.. We're ready." The two walked to the door and before leaving both turned to the entrance way and said together.

"We're heading out now, Be back soon." The door closed behind them leaving the house silent and lifeless.

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 **A/N: I will say now that Dox will not be coming back to life, he is content with his afterlife and waiting for Marco hence Keeping Your Promise. I wanted to set the scene for the next part of this story with all of them having to have moved on from it, not fully there but mending. The next chapter will have a timeskip of the 5 months straight into the story arc. There was someone behind what happened in the past with Darkco and it's this person who will cause issues for our characters.**

 **Thank you to anyone who supported me in Flowers and Stars and I hope to do justice to the story in this sequel. If you have any questions feel free to PM me otherwise please review and let me know what you think.**


	2. In Six Months I Pledge

**Keeping Your Promise 2**

 **In Six Months I Pledge**

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 **A/N: Here is Chapter 2 of 'Keeping Your Promise', The Sequel to 'Flowers And Stars'. I hope you all enjoy :)  
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 **Useful76: Did you get round to reading the first chapter?**

 **Lerans: The first few chapters are going to be building up the story and the AU. It was easier to start 'Flowers and Stars' because I didn't have to worry to much about the history but its been difficult to know where to go with the story that ticks all the boxes. I've planned out the story from start to finish so seeing where it goes and trying to make a good sequel :) Thank you for your continued support tho :)**

 **Kerbolious: Thank you so much :) Honestly means a lot that you don't want it to end, I'm sorry it's taken a lot longer to have chapter 2 but had a lot going on and I'm trying to help someone else with another project. I was also challenging myself with Flowers and Stars to publish once a day. I'll try to do 2-3 times a week with this with the minimum once a week. I just took longer as I wanted to plan out the story and make sure I had a goal in sight. This chapter explores whats been going on and whats happening for the next few chapter. Hope you enjoy :)**

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Star Butterfly looked across at the table she had laid out. She had travelled out early in the morning to the spot where she had first met Dox. She looked across at the damage that remained and realised that this was one place she wanted to change. She used her wand to return life to the ground. Grass swept underneath her covering the whole field in a green hue. She carried on pouring her magic into the ground and around her she watched as a ring of bushes formed. On each bush was an array of beautiful ruby red roses. She had summoned a table to appear in the centre and had summoned eight chairs.

She whipped out a cover and laid it down before placing all the plates and food she had brought with her. She turned into her butterfly form and flew high into the sky. She witnessed the continuation of the rose bushes spread till she remained in the middle of a maze. She thought the trip would be fun for the others and it would add something else to the borders of the Butterfly Kingdom rather than a dusty stretch of dry dirt.

She went to her chair and sat down allowing herself to think about the day ahead. She found herself tapping on the table with nerves. She had pushed for the Order of the Crescent Moon without really talking to the others first and wasn't sure if they really wanted to join it or if they had accepted because she had sprung it on her. She was excited to see her friends, all of them, it had been much easier not seeing them knowing they were safe and a portal away but she wanted them back in her life and everything back on track.

Star had managed to decrease the amount of disputes due to discrimination between Monsters and Mewmans. The truth being that in the fight for their lives they just went through the enemies had been led by a human and the people who fought by their side and protect them were monsters. Star was a little worried that the anger would turn to Marco but with Janna as one of the three division leaders being human they were ready to put the anger behind them. Star had been surprised to know that the armies of Mewni were very behind adopting the Science, Air and Ground Divisions as a legitimate war time strategy with it now being included. The Science division was truthfully more magic based but the new leader, Professor Barnus, had stated once Marco had reached Knighthood and acquired the support he needed they would adopt Earth science and also add an Medic Division. They had high hopes for Marco and it surprised Star to know just how many people were expecting bright things from his future. It was as if the world had finally caught up with how Star had always seen him. Thanks to the lessening of small disputes and her civilians working together Star had finished all of her work that had been back dated and completed enough of her duties that her mother had assured her that she could rest easy for their reunion. Star let her head rest in her arms as she drifted off waiting for the others to arrive.

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Janna felt the sun shining in through the window of her room. She looked up to see Heckapoo standing over her.

"You ever gonna get up Witch?" She chuckled looking down at the tired girl.

"What are you doing? It's not even midday? Why are you waking me up now?" Janna moaned from beneath the covers as she huddled into a ball.

"Because we aren't going to be late and I'm not going to leave without you, I would have thought you would know that by now." Heckapoo chuckled before heading back out of the room followed by a pillow thrown by Janna.

"You know I think I still prefer it when we didn't like each other!" Janna groaned. She sat up from the bed and noticed Heckapoo had brought her breakfast up. Her parents had taken to the girl enormously and had actually let her have the spare room. It was decorated with stuff from their adventures together.

Their time together exploring the dimensions had ended up being over a significant 60,000 years. Most of the memories were just flashes in her mind and it had taken a lot of time and a particularly effective memory back up spell to even remind Janna of her time on earth. She was told as time went on she'd lose all of those memories as her brain couldn't process it but she didn't mind. She hoped to retain enough to carry on being her bad ass self and enough to know that she could leave the Demi-Goddess to watch her back any day. She ate her breakfast and got dressed. She wore her usual black jeans with the rips in, dark green boots, an oversized jumper that ended up only covering one of her shoulders and her beanie. She nodded at the mirror before heading downstairs.

Her parents weren't home for their departure but she reached into a box by the door to find their note to her. This had been tradition in her family to always either wish her goodbye or leave her a note letting her know how much they loved her and this time it included a section about remembering to write often and visit again. Janna put it to her past and the self harm, she honestly believed her parents had only started it and worked on their problems because of her problems. She thought that Marco must have told them or intervened in some way letting her parents know she needed their help and support. Janna was honestly grateful as she looked up from her note to see Heckapoo grabbing her coat. She had brought the demi-goddess that jacket early on in their thousands of years of adventure bit no matter how much Janna tried she couldn't remember the moment.

"I guess this is life for me from now on... Forgetting the past.." Janna sighed trying not to let it bother her.

"You say something?" Heckapoo asked as she was cutting open a portal to near the meeting place.

"I said can you get a move on Miss I don't want to be late" Janna pushed Heckapoo through joining her straight after, much to her surprise she found herself falling down onto the lush green environment below. She looked up at Heckapoo as the wind raced passed them.

"Really! You really wanna do this now?" Janna laughed as Heckapoo twirled passed her mirroring her laugh. They both waiting until just before the ground and both drew magic runes in the air. Light lit up in front of them as it formed into a makeshift slide. The two woman slid down at intense speed before coming to a stop just before the ground. They stood up and looked over at each other. Both their hair styles now looked as if they'd been electrocuted. Janna carried on laughing at the scene while Heckapoo patted her hair down.

"Hahaha laugh away Witch i may have waited an incredibly long time but i got my revenge" She looked up at her friend and rival with confidence only to see her struggling to stand due to laughing so hard. "You are strange..."

"You love it! Now let's go find the others!" Janna chuckled. Turning around she noticed Star sleeping on the well laid table beside her.

"I have an idea!"

"What is it?"

"How about we both arrive on time like you wanted and sleep like I wanted?" Janna asked excited.

"How would we do that?" Heckapoo asked confused. Janna pointed behind her and Heckapoo looked past her at Star sleeping and smiled.

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Tom Lucitor felt the beads of sweat fall down his forehead, not only because when you have three eyes having sweat drip into them was even grosser but because he was trying so hard not to concentrate on the sight before him. He knew if he moved to wipe the sweat away it would all be over, he'd never recover from the repercussions. He knew that this moment would define him from hence forth as when he stopped being a boy and turned into a man. It was the start of the rest of his life.

 **"Right Foot Green"** Tom looked down the tangle of bodies beneath him to see one of the higher demons growl as they tried to move amongst the other demons. He retracted his lower spiked bone shards that lined his leg to not rip the mat as he stretched out for the green spot however this move was one too many as his arms gave out. When he had fallen he had taken the other 3 players with him as they fell to the ground. Only the ground had opened up and swallowed them whole leaving only a rigid Tom on the board.

 **"Winner of Demonic Twister is Prince Tom Lucitor. As per the rules you are the last High Demon not to fall to the pit of eternal misery and have been granted permission to speak and ask one request of the King and Queen of the Underworld."** The announcer called out loudly. Tom dropped to the ground before rolling to the side to avoid the opening hole. When he was King he'd simply change the notion of gaining access to the royal court to a raffle... a game of twister that ended in eternal damnation seemed pretty harsh, he was just glad that Marco had pulled the game out before when he visited and that he had played against Star. She made her own rules as she went and thanks to her unruly behaviour he had gotten extremely good at the game. To which he would be eternally grateful as when he was told that if he requested something from "The King and Queen of the Underworld, Rulers of Hell and All of Eternal Suffering" as oppose to "Mum and Dad" he would have to earn the right he had breathed a sigh of relief to learn it was going to be a game he knew.

He rushed forward pushing the doors ajar, storming across the nave, he wondered why Demon's would make their royal throne room resemble a church but pushed the thought back for another day. He stood before his parents and took a knee.

"Tom my son why did you use the front door?" His father spoke to him with affection and love but was met with a low moan from his wife. "Ahh yes dear, he did say he wasn't coming here today as my son but a Prince of the Underworld." He cleared his throat and almost instantly his demeanour changed. Where before it was warm and welcoming now it was cold and uninviting.

 _ **"Speak subject, Thou art want to shrift thy fancy? If I find thee deserving to be honest then I shall quicken thy deserving but if not and I find thy fancy yare then get hence thee."** _His father spoke harshly and sharply. He wasted no time in getting to the point and had always had done. Tom's mother may have been a large scary looking demon but as a Princess of the Underworld she was considered soft and weak. When she had introduced Tom's father as her partner her parents had almost immediately refuse. They humoured his mother and gave him a chance and Tom's grandfather had witnessed the 'Kingly Persona' and given his blessing. He was happy to know that his daughter had found a kind and caring husband but also happy to know he had a cruel evil side fit for the depths of hell. Tom's mother let out another moan to her husband.

"Too much dear? Well I'm not really sure what to go for then. Tom do you just want to tell us why you would risk your life with a trial rather than ask us normally?" His Dad looked to his wife for the nod of approval which she gave.

"Thanks Mum" Tom smiled to his mother for her aid which she returned again. "I wanted to go through the proper channels for two reasons, one is to respect tradition and the other is because I'm afraid you might say no to your son but yes to your prince.." Tom admitted. His father frowned before motioning for him to continue.

"I come before you today as Prince of the Underworld to ask you for your blessing in proposing to the Princess of the Butterfly Kingdom, Star Butterfly." Tom closed his eyes waiting for the backlash. It was no secret that his father and Star's didn't have the best relationship. Tom had been worried that his parents would never accept his relationship. His mother had worried when him and Star had gotten back together that he would get hurt again but after the last year she had grown to accept the relationship.

Tom waited before realising no one had spoke. He looked up to see his mother with tears in her eyes and his father with a bright smile across his face.

"About time son!" His father answered gleefully, he turned to one of the elite guards in the room.

 _ **"Bring it to me now!"**_ the guard nodded in reply and disappeared from the room. Tom's mother had rose from her throne and picked Tom up. She started to nuzzle his small body against her cheek. This was her way of hugging him without breaking him. When she had first met Tom's father she had broken his bones several times over before finding out the right strength to use.

"Wait, so this is a yes?" Tom asked confused. He pushed against his mothers cheek for room to breath and speak. She let him down before returning to her seat crying happily.

"Of course it is my son! We know how much you love the princess. You have worked so hard over the years to impress her and be the man she deserves. If you had asked us when you were still throwing your demonic temper tantrums we'd have refused but with the work you have done together, that special dance together you had and how much you've matured how could you honestly think we'd say no?

Thomas, you have united all the savage clans of the wastelands, returned the stolen treasures to the forest clans and united the families of the fire clans. You have united the underworld more in one year than the last ten generations before you and you're still only a prince. Star Butterfly has been by your side the whole time and brought out the best of you. If you wish to ask for her hand i give you my full blessing as your king and father. Please my son, follow your heart!" Just as the King finished speaking the elite returned carrying a small box. He passed it to the young prince who opened it. Inside were three rings, one was a solid black engagement ring with a red diamond 💎 on top in the shape of a skull with blue diamond eyes. The other two were black ebony wedding bands with gold demonic inscriptions inside them. He read it _"Eternity, Oblivion and Beyond."_ Tom remembered the words as the ones he's parents always said to each other. It meant that eternity wasn't long enough, the oblivion wasn't strong enough and only the beyond was enough for their love.

"Dad I.. I.. I don't know what to say?" Tom was speechless as he looked down at the rings.

"Thank your mother, she had them made the day after you were born. They will change size to fit any wearer but must only be given once. We love you son and we can only wish the best for you..." His Dad smiled down at him.

"Thank you Mum, thank you both of you... This is amazing.. I just need to ask King River and then i can ask Star.. But i don't know whether or not he'll say yes.." Tom admitted. His eyes looked on his father who was looking shifty.

"About that.. Well we sort of guessed that you'd be asking us this when we heard you were taking the trial so.." The King stood up and pulled a curtain down that hung beside them. Behind it stood a mirror housing a small muscular man with blonde hair and a beard. He wiped the tears from his eyes and sniffled.

"Tom my boy that was wonderful! I think Moonpie will agree with me when I say that we would be proud and happy to accept you into our family as our son in law and as Star's husband if she should say yes and i think its probably going to be a yes."

Tom stared at the king and then back to his parents before turning back to the king. He went to speak but found only an odd sound escaped his mouth. He had no idea what to say in this situation. He wad hoping to have a long time to plan out what to say to River but thanks to his father he hadn't gotten that chance.

"Also weren't you meant to be meeting my little bumpkin around now?" River asked the prince. He quickly looked down at his mirror phone to see the time and felt like the multiverse had answered his prayers.

"You are right King River, thank you for your blessing but i have to get going. Thank you again King and Queen, I will make you proud." He bowed to all three before running from the throne room almost skipping and quickly opened a portal.

Stepping through he appeared beside the entrance of a maze. He checked his location and realised one of the others must have put this here. He put the ring box away in his jacket pocket before rushing into the maze hoping to find the centre soon.

* * *

/

Dox sat inside the Parahouse upside down on the sofa. Truth is, he had already grown bored of being there. Nothing had been happening on the Marco Channel that interested him and he had already reorganised the house twice.

He thought about what the Goddess of Fate had told him and summed it up to three main points.

 _"One, She really is a god and there are others keeping tabs on their lives."_

 _"Two, Some one was behind everything that happened in his life and with Marco."_

 _"Three, The threat wasn't over yet."_ He kept repeating these three points. He could tell from watching him that Marco had felt the on coming storm and knew it wasn't over which had made Dox quite proud. He was about to start reorganising the house again when he heard a noise from another part of the house.

 ** _Knock Knock_**

Dox stuck his head out the door looking at the Parahouse entrance. He felt even more reluctant to acknowledge the sound than the first time someone had knocked on the door. Last time he answered it he was dead shortly after and that had just been a pocket dimension. Now he was in a place created by gods and in the after life. He walked up to the door and listened closely.

 ** _Knock Knock_**

He breathed in deep before opening the door. Unlike the first time when he had opened the door to find bricked up wall he now found a small porch. Inside the porch was a young boy, probably around 16 he had bright blue hair which was short and spiky. His eyes were a similar shade of blue and on his left cheek under his eye he had a small blue heart mark. He wore similar clothes to Dox only with a blue tie oppose to Dox's red one. In all cases he looked like he could be Dox's younger relative who decided blue is better than red. Dox stared at the boy puzzled before deciding to speak to him.

"I'm not interested in any cookies girl scout, thanks." He shut the door and walked away.

 ** _Knock Knock_**

Dox sighed before walking back to the door and opening it. The boy hadn't moved and hadn't even changed facial expressions.

"Can I help you?" Dox asked him.

"Do you want some cookies?" The boy asked back with a smile. Dox went to shut the door again but the boy put his foot in the way to stop him.

"Wait wait wait.. I was kidding, please just let me in and hear me out. I only managed to stabilise the entrance here for a brief time if you don't let me in soon I'll die out here." Dox opened the door and led the boy around to his study he went to jump on the sofa but Dox stopped him and pulled out a wooden chair for him to sit on.

"Not big on guests?" The boy chuckled.

"That sofa is for people who live here and my family.. You're neither and its not that i hate guests its just the last one i had killed me and you don't expect guests in the after life."

"Ahh true, still can't believe you turned down the Goddess' offer of having your life back!" Dox gave the boy a puzzled look.

"Who are you?"

"Me? I don't really have a name anymore.. Been a long time since I did. I go by the title 'Apostle of the Frozen Eclipse' although i guess you prefer the name Jester over Apostle."

"You're a Jester too? Did Fate send you?" Dox asked. He was growing increasingly irritable with the boy in his presence.

"Ooo right direction but wrong Goddess. I, my friend, am the Apostle of Lady Love not Madame Fate."

"Why are you here then?"

"You see Madame Fate is seeking answers to what led to the corruption in the timelines, she was not too happy when she approached my Lady. They talked it out and Lady Love offered her aid. In place of their Jester she offered to send me as a physical tether to watch over them. So Madame Fate has you their Guardian watching over them and if need be i can take instructions from you and aid your champions" The Apostle smiled softly at him.

"So if two Goddess' are involved in this how high does this corruption go? And you're here to help?"

"Only a deity level being could have linked those two dimensions meaning it is either the work of a god or their Apostle. Since it obviously wasn't Fate and she doesn't suspect Love her next suspect will probably be War and his Apostle. It's just not as easy to prove it. You would need to descend to the mortal realm and find proof but Goddess' can't do that hence why I'm going."

Dox took in everything he said realising that it filled a lot of the gaps for him. Who could deceive a Goddess? A God probably could. He knew what the boy said made sense.

"Okay if everything you say is true what are you going to do? Walk up to Marco, Kelly and the others and tell them all this?"

"No, definitely not, we are not meant to mess around with the Mortal realm as much as we can avoid it. Your Blood Moon role is a loop hole in that at the time you were not a true Apostle however now as Guardian you are."

"So what is your plan then? And are you dead?" Dox asked very matter of fact like.

"I'm going to be enrolled into the magic school and work my way into their group. If War is the culprit he won't act again so soon so i have time and no I'm not dead haha" laughed the boy.

"How are you here then?"

"Unlike you who got to jump through time to meet your champions I don't have that privilege, also my role is less focused than yours was. As an Apostle of Love my role is to find souls who belong together and unite them. I have to overcome destiny and conflict to unite my lovers. I just haven't found them yet.. So i live here in the realm of Gods with Lady Love, truthfully i think she's grateful for the company."

"What about your family? Your friends?"

"You don't know?"

"Know what?" Quizzed Dox.

"All Apostles are orphans or babies abandoned to death. We are given a second chance by our God or Goddess. We serve them in return for the life they granted us to live. You lived with your adopted father for 21 years and got to enjoy life. I lived with my Goddess since day one. My parents were Mewman who were swallowed in a mudslide. They both sheltered me with their bodies so i may survive and their love inspired Lady Love to save me and raise me herself... The deities don't wish to affect the mortals too much so by choosing those that would otherwise have perished you ensure not to affect the timeline too much. In fact you handing your title and role to another was surprising even for my Lady. She was impressed that you were able to tap into the magic of the Apostle of Fate and pass that power to the child. It's why she wants to help as she wants to see a happy ending. Truthfully i had thought when they defeated Darkco that this was all over and the story was done but my Lady told me this wasn't over." The boy finished explaining and waited for Dox to process all this new information. He sat there taking it all in thinking back to his three original points.

 _"One, She really is a god and there are others keeping tabs on their lives. There was now also the Apostles which I apparently am one of as well. These chosen children who would grow to be the instruments of the gods and follow their commands. My Goddess seems to be an eccentric one and I joined in a weird way."_

 _"Two, Some one was behind everything that happened in my life and with Marco. Most likely it was going to be the God of War and his Apostle. While it wasn't clear why or how or even if it was them for some reason someone had acted to affect all their lives and it was thanks to Fate that I lived to save them."_

 _"Three, The threat wasn't over yet. Whoever had interfered whether it was War or not they weren't done and would strike again in the future. I was given the role of Guardian and watcher and had to rely on the Apostle of the Goddess of Love to protect them."_

Dox finished processing all the new information before turning to the Apostle.

"Okay well I guess we're going to be working together from now on.."

"Sure are, well I'm going to get going. My first day of Magic School starts tomorrow and I don't want to be late or tired so I'll see myself out." The boy walked to the door to leave.

"Wait.." He turned to see Dox rifling through his desk. He pulled out a book and handed it to the boy.

"This is a dummies guide to learning magic?" The boy looked both confused and offended.

"Before you think bad of me you should know this was written by my father and will be all the best stuff you could learn at that school. It'll be like a cheat guide that can help you."

"Whoa.. You make a good Guardian you know that? Anything else?"

"Yes, You need a name."

"A name?"

"Yes and a good one.."

"You got any in mind?"

"As a matter of fact I do."

* * *

/

Marco and Kelly leap from the portal and rolled to the ground.

" I really need to get the hang of controlling the Parahouse. He made it look so easy."

"Well it'll take time and time we've got so don't worry about it Marco." He smiled back at her and grabbed her hand. They walked towards the meeting place talking about all their plans and the time they spent apart. Kelly loved hearing about Marco's family and especially about Alessandro. Ever since Tom had given him the bracelet Ales had started to behave a bit more with his powers and was handling them much better. After the month with Marco teaching him what was good and bad he knew when to stop using his powers so his parents could handle him. He hadn't shown anymore new powers but Glossaryck had assured them that they would come and when he reached the age of 14 he could attend magic lessons at his school. He would give him private lessons before that but that would be his official debut.

Marco on the other hand was worried about how her family had taken to him. He was the reason she had disappeared for a year and come back so changed so was worried how they'd take to him.

The two laughed and wore bright smiles when they reached the maze. Marco's face lit up realising Star must of put it here and how much it meant to him that it turned into some where fun and beautiful. Kelly on the other hand felt her warrior spirit ignite and turned to her partner.

"I'll race you!" She tore her hand away and ran straight into the maze. He chuckled before running after her taking the opposite way from her. Both of them were so into it that neither noticed a deflated demon sitting in the entrance way.

"Why do I keep ending up back here?" Tom moaned before picking himself back up and trying again.

Kelly was the first to find a dead end but doubled back and found an alternate path. Marco was making a lot of progress before he reached a dead end. Knowing that the end was probably over the hedge he tried to air walk over it when a branch burst out and slapped him down.

"No cheating huh.."

He raced back before finding another path. Kelly had similar experiences after trying to cut her way through her 5th dead end. They both crashed into each other and they raced towards the final part of the maze. Both running as fast as they could trying to stop the other. Kelly was the first to strike and tried to trip him but he jumped over her. He thought he'd dodged her but she had tied a rope to his leg and pulled him back. He felt her walk over him and grabbed her leg and pulled her down too. They both laughed before getting up and running into the clearing for a tie.

"Can't believe you tried to trip me!" Marco laughed at her.

"Well i cant believe you didn't let me win" She pouted back.

"Can't win them all Mi Hermosa Flor" Marco winked to her. She just laughed before brushing the dirt off of him and herself. The pair looked up to see a beautiful archway of roses. They walked through to find Star, Janna and Heckapoo asleep on the table.

"What's going on? Nap time?" Marco quickly used spell detection magic to try to see if something had caused this but Kelly walked up to Star and wiped the drool off of her face.

"I think it's called sleeping Marco.." She giggled back at him. He pretended to be annoyed by her comment but he loved her little giggle and it always made him smile.

"Should we wake them?"

"I think that would be for the best" Both turned to see Glossaryck floating behind them. Beside him levitating in a cube of ice was Tom.

"Whoa.. What did you do to Tom?" Marco asked rushing over to him.

"Cooled him off, He was about to burn down this whole maze. I mean I had watched him struggle to get through it for the last 2 hours so I can understand why he would be mad. Even more so after he saw you two disappear into it and not come out." Glossaryck released his magic letting the ice thaw and Tom come out.

"Th-th-thanks Gloss-Gloss-Glossary-ck.." Tom chattered through his teeth. He started to release his flames to warm himself back up.

"You're welcome Prince Tom."

"You shouldn't thank him for making you a Tompop?" Kelly laughed at the situation.

"I'm not, I'm thanking him for stopping me from being a dufus. The ice cube thing actually brought back a lot of memories" Tom winked at Marco who laughed. He walked over to the table and put his cold hands on Stars cheeks. She shot up and crashed her skull into his sending him wincing to the floor.

"SO YOU'VE COME DEATH! YOU WILL NOT HAVE ME THIS DAY!" Star yelled out preparing to fight. Kelly was now on the floor in hysterics as Marco was seeing to the damage to Tom's face while telling him he should have expected that. Janna and Heckapoo both shot up confused with everything going on.

After spending a while making sure everyone was okay and greeting each other the seven sat down at the table and began to eat. They caught up with each other telling their stories of what they had been up to. Janna revealing all the mysterious she had discovered and adventures she had been on. Sometimes she'd pause as she couldn't remember and Heckapoo was by her side to fill in the gaps. The other just thought it was their way of telling stories so they didn't notice Janna's memory lapse. Glossaryck informed them all about the school he had opened and how Lady Higgs was performing well at her magic lessons and was the model pupil so far. He would be welcoming the new class the following day and that he needed to start hiring magic tutors. Tom told them all about his and Star's work to unite the dimensions from his journey's to all corners of the underworld to the unity of the clans. Star chirped in and told everyone the good news about Ruby and Barnus which pleased everyone. Carrying on the happy mood Marco told everyone about how his family had been doing and how everyone was on earth. How he'd made up with Jackie and the rest he'd left behind and how he finished his education much to Glossaryck's praise. Kelly finished up their catch up by telling everyone about her families new forge and that they were going to open a new business serving both the kingdom and every day mercenaries. Her family would need a bit more time and training but she was ready to start up her own shop after her 6 months of service.

"So kicking off this meeting.. I want to propose a plan for us all" Janna said out of the blue to the group.

"Go on Janna?"

"I propose that in 6 months' time, the day after Marco and Kelly get Knighted we should meet back here to do this again. I think we should all commit the next 6 months to reaching our goals and finding our new place here. I'm not from Mewni originally but I want it to become my home, after speaking to my parents they are okay if I just go with the flow of things and find my own path here. I thought about it a lot and so... Glossaryck, I think I'll need some training with the non-magical part but I'd love to apply for a job as tutor at your school." Everyone paused unsure of what to say with Glossaryck choking on the drink he had in his mouth. He managed to swallow before turning to Janna excited.

"Really! You really want to come to the school.. Well If that's the case I'd love to accept you. With you being on the Commission it would really raise the school's reputation and I could always do with having a deputy headmistress around!" Glossaryck smiled enthusiastically. Heckapoo, on the other hand, frowned.

"What about your Commission work?" Janna took Heckapoo's hand and knew deep down she wasn't worried about the Commission at all.

"Look Matchstick I'll be okay, there's not a problem out there I can't beat and I really want this. Everyone else on the Commission has a day job as well even you. As the Ambassador of Earth I don't actually do anything ninety nine percent of the time and so I really think this would be great. I learnt so much in our travels and I'd love to teach it to others.. Plus I've always kind of wanted to be a teacher." Janna blushed admitting the last part.

"It's true, She use to make me play as her student when we were really little. I thought at first it was just a new way to bother me but I realised she really was into it. I have to say though I did not appreciate writing lines for being "too safe"." Everyone laughed as Marco recounted another part of his safe kid history. Heckapoo was still not fully convinced but decided she couldn't complain anymore given how happy Janna was about it.

"Well okay so a 6 months plan?.. I want to change the way Mewmans and Monsters think of everything. I mean, we've made massive progress in getting rid of monster discrimination and I think the work we've done could be considered massive but it's only got us back to where we should have been plenty of years ago. I want to fully restore the Monster royal families. Ludo and Buff have been helping me track down the ancestors of those who were robbed of their thrones and with their help we'll restore their titles, homes and lands. Truth be told the land taken from them was never claimed it was just taken from them which is stupid. I also want to support Glossaryck's school, I may not have been the best student but making magic something not only limited to royalty will blur the lines between us even more which would be amazing. So my pledge is this time in six months I will have restored several kingdoms in Mewni." Star stood up while holding up her glass. Janna stood up holding her glass mouthing the word teacher so Star didn't seem so odd for doing the routine.

"I'll spend the next 6 months both helping Star and leading my own Kingdom. I may have united the Clans of the Underworld but what's next is building bridges that last. I also have to ensure that the treaties formed under Dox's threat are formed again anew under peaceful agenda. I've also been in touch with all the crown Princes and Princess' of the known dimensions and have begun to organise an organisation for the future rulers. I want to ensure the good peace now being formed in our parents time stays good. I've started by using Star's connections and Marco I'd really like your help as Princess Turdina as I feel like we could turn St Olga's into the hub of the future rulers. It would tie into the freedom they are all so behind in that each ruler is their own individual and that we could use that message as a guide for the organisation. I'm still not sure on a name but I'll come up with one. So my pledge is that this time in six months I will have founded the organisation that leads our futures into a brighter tomorrow, including the crown monsters that Star re-establishes." Tom added at the end finishing his declaration. The other four sat silently trying to decide who went next when Heckapoo stood up.

"In memory of Dox I want to open an orphanage here on Mewni and in every dimension. Janna and I set up one in my dimension called **'Each Their Own Paradox'**. I want to make it so no children are abandoned without a future. By setting up one in each dimension as a starting point I want to find a future for all the children like him so no one has to end their life like his. I think using the influence from the rulers we know and by joining the mission into Tom's future goal we can establish royal backing of the orphanage's which will make them more likely to succeed. I will also be able to offer those who are gifted the chance to attend magic school or find other ways for them to move on with life. I will use my own private funds and the commissions backing to carry on this goal." Heckapoo's face flushed red when she turned to see Janna smiling at her brightly and the others clapped to her. "So this time in six months I pledge to have opened several new orphanages and received royal backing." She raised her glass still blushing.

"I want the school to grow, It is still very young and not many know its name, Which is **'The Index Of Knowledge'** by the way." Everyone smiled hearing it. "You weren't the only one who wanted to pay homage to him my dears, anyway, I want it to be a haven to those who use magic and those who wish to learn as such if the school becomes able to support itself then I am planning on talking to local intellectuals and finding out if there is any way to re-open the long closed Mewni schools. I, like you Star, want to remove what separated everyone and that is knowledge. For those gifted with magic I will offer to them **The Index of Knowledge** and to those who just wish to learn I will offer them ordinary schools. Which I will of course offer the services freely to those raised by **'Each Their Own Paradox'.** " Glossaryck winked to Heckapoo. "So I pledge that this time in six months my school will be thriving and I will have found enough support to re-establish education throughout Mewni and to those who seek it." Glossaryck raised his pudding cup with the others.

Kelly went to speak but suddenly Star rushed over to her and whispered something in her ear that made them both squeal and start to jump up and down excitedly. Star rushed back to her spot and raised her glass again.

"So my original plan was just to work for the next six months wherever I could but I have just been informed that for the next six months I will work as the Royal Blacksmith of Butterfly Castle and provide weapons of power and ceremony to those deserving according to royal verdict. I will also make weapons for the armies of the Butterfly Kingdom and teach some apprentices to take my place in the royal forge. During the six months I will make a name for myself as a weapons maker and dealer so that after using the money I earn to open a forge in the kingdom I will be a top class blacksmith, enchanter and merchant. So this time in six months I pledge to be opening my first store **'A Call To Arms'** the home of the royal blacksmith and the best damn weapons you will have ever seen!" Kelly raised her glass so excitedly she spilled almost all of her drink over the table but she and no one else even cared. They were all so excited and buzzed that they all turned to Marco waiting to hear his pledge.

"I plan to go back and train as a squire for 6 months more under a real knight, Hopefully the work we do will be enough to get me recognised enough to be Knighted publicly. That's honestly all I want for the next six months to train hard, get stronger and earn a good enough reputation that when I am knighted I can find the support I need to start the first Mewman hospital. I also plan to go back to earth and introduce 'Magic Medicine' to all the universities there so that they spread it and hopefully within a few years on Earth the techniques will go global and save lives every day. Back here on Mewni I want to get medicine introduced and save lives of Mewmans here when magic isn't the right answer. I want to incorporate the magic school into this as magic is sometimes the answer and if you can establish the normal school I can use the connections I get from the universities of Earth to find teachers and people willing to increase knowledge across dimensions. So I pledge that this time in six months I will be a Knight worth supporting." He raised his glass and they all clanked them together.

 _"I want to be a teacher, if I am to lose my memories I want the good ones to be passed on."_

 _"I want Mewni to be united beyond race and history, I want the royals of Mewni restored."_

 _"I want 'Each Their Own Paradox, to be successful, I want to remember him and protect her."_

 _"I will bring knowledge to everyone and make it so he wasn't the only one raise by me."_

 _"I will propose to Star and build her a future where she'll be safe and happy with me."_

 _"I will make my family, Dox and Marco proud by succeeding with my new forge!"_

 _"I will become a worthy Knight, Worthy to give his sacrifice new meaning!"_

* * *

 _/_

 **A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Once again sorry it took longer than people had expected after Flowers and Stars but I'm trying to find a new schedule. I really want to continue and complete this sequel and also do you proud with it. If you have any questions or comments feel free to message me or leave a review and I'll always try to reply.**

 **Thank you again :)  
**


	3. A Bump In The Road

**Keeping Your Promise#3**

 **A Bump In The Road**

* * *

 **/**

 **A/N: Hey everyone, Here is Chapter 3 of Keeping Your Promise. :) Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy the chapter.**

 **Guest: Thank you :) I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter.**

 **Lerans: Thanks, I was worried that people would not like the change in schedule so it relieved me to know you wouldn't mind. :) Hope you enjoy the chapter and see how they struggle to work towards those goals.**

 **Useful76: Awesome :) Yeah there is a lot I'm finding needs to be set up to transition properly from Flowers and Stars to this story. I know where I want to go with it but am planning it out more. Hope you like this chapter.**

 **Kerbolious: Yeah :) I wanted each to have their own goal as it lets them exist more as individuals rather than all having the same thing in mind. Janna's memory will be sort of hinted in the background as it worsens and not a main issue till near the end I want it to progress as she tries to hide it. I'm glad you don't mind about the schedule and as such it turns out I ended up writing my longest chapter. Hoping you enjoy this next part.**

 **006: Glad you love it :) hope you love this one too!**

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A month had passed since the day the friends had all made their pledges together and each was working towards their own goal. Sometimes their goals would cross over and sometimes they wouldn't see each other for a while but they didn't mind as they knew that together they were all growing and advancing in their lives. For the first month things for all of them had been going well with few problems but that peace just couldn't last.

Kelly threw her hammer across the royal forge where it stayed lodged into the wall. The apprentice who had been working with her had managed to duck as the hammer was thrown and knew this was no time to be around. He snuck out of the forge to avoid her temper calling it a day. Kelly grabbed at her hair in frustration as she looked down at the sword she had been enchanting, it had cracked under the pressure the spell placed on it. When she had first joined the forge she had met the old owner, she began to remember what the retiring blacksmith had told her.

 _"So what materials are you used to working with?" The forge master, as he liked to be called, asked while stroking his beard. Kelly had expected him to judge her for being a girl or something but after seeing one of her pieces he had happily agreed to pass the forge onto her._

 _"Bits of everything really. Do- My friend who taught me would bring me various ores, ingots and magic crystals from different dimensions to work with." She was slightly confused by the question._

 _"Then my child, i think you may soon struggle in your duty."_

 _"What? Why?"_

 _"When I was first recruited here as an apprentice I used whatever leftover scrap metal I could get my hands on to practice and forge. From then on till now I have used whatever I could and did with it the best that my ability allowed. You, on the other hand, have been given the best of the best in terms of materials and taught skills to match high grade materials, you have made what I can only describe as God Slayers. The real world isn't so nice my child and you may have to contend with substandard materials and it may end up breaking you. It's a blacksmiths undoing."_

At the time Kelly had just passed it on as silly advice, she could work with anything. The first few weeks she had made Dragon Armour that gave the wearer the power and strength of a dragon but that had used up all the dragon scales. She had gone on to make a mix of stuff from swords, to shields and even made a specific wand to order. This process repeated itself until all she was left with was ores and ingots so fragile and weak that even if she managed to temper them correctly they wouldn't survive the enchanting. For a whole week now she hadn't managed to produce a single thing and the stress of it was showing.

The week before she had tried heading to the various markets across the dimensions to find better materials. She had an allowance from the kingdom and she was going to use it. Only that hadn't worked out like Kelly had wanted.

 _"How much for the magic crystals in the corner?" Kelly asked the shop keeper. This was the only store she had managed to find decent materials in. After lifting her head to look at the pile of crystal the shop keeper replied._

 _"5000 Gold." Kelly thought about it.. It was almost all of the money she had to spare but with all that crystal she could produce some good works and make money to buy more._

 _"Great ill take them" She said with a smile only to be laughed at._

 _"Them? It's 5000 Gold a piece for that crystal, if you want it all it'll be 50,000 Gold at the best price."_

 _"That's insane! How can you charge that much!? Are you trying to rip me off?"_

 _"That's the market price, I don't know where you came from mossy but if you don't even know how much this is worth then don't come into my store and insult me ever again." Kelly left confused. She approached King River the moment she got back to the castle to ask him about what had happened._

 _"Kelly, my dear that shop keeper was correct, Magic crystals are indeed expensive."_

 _"But everything is so expensive! How am i meant to make weapons that are going to do the job if I can't get the materials!" Kelly replied frustrated._

 _"Kelly look at this sword and tell me what you think?" River pushed a sword into her hands. It was light but sturdy. It had gold engravings along the hilt and a solid diamond pommel._

 _"Well it looks wonderful at first glance but it would break if used on anything sturdier than stone. It has no real balance and it went so heavily on the design that it lacks sharpness and real weight where needed." Kelly handed the sword back to see River laughing._

 _"Kelly, this is the sword I was given by the best blacksmith around to defend myself as King."_

 _"But it's awful, you could defend yourself just as good with a stick off the ground or a pitchfork from one of the farmers!"_

 _"Exactly! It's why I use my trusty axe most of the time. This is the perfect example of why you are struggling my dear. This sword is what most people in your trade would consider high end and good. You, however, see it as junk because your weapons are far beyond anyone else's. If you really want my advice you have several options. One, give up on the weapons you dream of and settle to industry standards. Two, suck it up and try to make do with what you have or.."_

 _"Or..?" By now Kelly's resolve felt crushed._

 _"Or think of a way to turn standard garbage into treasures. It's okay if you want to make good weapons for the common people, in fact I think you should as not everyone would be able to afford your best. In the meantime, I'll talk to Moonpie and see if we can't get you an adventurers license. With that you would be able to journey out and find your own materials without any hindrance. You just need to know where to look." King River smiled and patted her shoulder before skipping off to do whatever he does._

Kelly walked up and pulled the hammer from the wall. She used her magic to repair the wall and sat back down. So far she had been trying to locate the sources of what she needed but nothing had come up. People were either protecting their sources or just didn't know. Half of the materials Dox had given her people thought the source dried up years ago. Some materials she had used were considered to only be myths. Kelly once again had to admit Dox was not your average kidnapper.

Kelly stood up and waved her hand opening a portal. She waved her hand again and it changed into a familiar door. She let herself back into the Parahouse and part of her wished Marco would be waiting to greet her but aside from the odd night where he came home and slept he was usually too busy doing his squireship. She has seen him less in the last week after an eventful night the two had shared. She had accepted that this was their life for the time being but it didn't make it any easier for her to be struggling without him, especially when he had left to go on a questionable mission she didn't agree with. She walked to the forge room in the lower parts of the house and went to the store room. Fully stocked. She had been hesitating to touch the supplies he left behind for her. These were a gift and she didn't want to use them recklessly. She picked up some ebony ore and ran her hand across it. It had been a while since she'd held good materials and this experience just saddened her.

Dox watched through his TV as the girl started to come undone. He felt guilty as he should have prepared her more for the real world when he knew she was going to go into the weapons trade. He had started a list but she wouldn't know where to look to find it. He realised, a while after being in the beyond, that he could watch the others' lives as well as Marcos but he still hadn't worked out what the goddess meant by he would work out how to help them when the time came. He listened as she began to sob lightly and he started to get angry about only being a watcher. He grabbed a nearby apple and threw it at the TV only for it to go straight through the screen and land with a thud in the storage room. Kelly was crying and didn't notice it roll under a shelf. Dox walked forward and held his hands to the TV. He could feel the warm glass against his fingers. He reached over and grabbed a pencil and pushed it to the screen. Like the apple it started to go straight through but he pulled it back. He quickly ran to his study and grabbed a piece of paper. He jotted down a list of books, locations and places to get materials. A list of contacts of people who could help her and stapled it to a sheet full of trading prices for materials. Dox sealed it in an envelope addressed to Kelly before running back to the TV. He pushed the letter through and it glided to the floor, however Kelly was still crying so hard she didn't notice it. He thought as fast as he could before running to the store room in the beyond, grabbing a iron ingot and running back. Pushing it through it made a massive crash as it landed on the floor shocking the girl awake from her depression. She looked over to see the ingot, apple and envelope. She picked up the ingot and put it on the shelf before leaving. She threw the apple away thinking Marco must have left it there and left the stock unstable when running an errand. She jumped onto the sofa and flipped the letter over seeing her name. She tore it open and began to read.

 _"Dear Kelly,_

 _I'm writing you this letter as in the future i fear you may struggle when I'm not around. It is not your fault but my own, I have not done enough to prepare you. To make up for that I have written you a list of references of books to research from the library in the Parahouse and in the Kingdom. They will teach you what you need to know. Included also is the locations of the material sources in case you need some or run out of the stock I left for you. I also added people who can help you and the market prices. With all this I hope it'll be enough for you to continue to make the standard of weapons I love and know. You will still need some training to forge with weaker, more fragile materials and I'm sure you can work out the right woman for the job._

 _I know things won't get easier and there will still be hardships ahead but I promise you that no matter what I'll always be watching over you all little sis._

 _Yours Truly,_

 _Index/Dox"_

Kelly's hands cupped her mouth to silence her sobs as fresh tears flowed down her cheek. She gripped the paper tightly re-reading again and again to check she wasn't imagining it. He did it again. He was always there for her and making sure everything worked out in the end. She wasn't sure how he knew she'd struggle with this but he did and thanks to that she now had answers. She quickly dried her tears and formed a new portal. Kelly stepped out and instantly felt the heat caress her face. She looked across the room to see her friend buried under a mountain of paper work.

"Sup Heckapoo?" The flaming woman's head shot up and her face filled with a smile as if relieved for the distraction.

"Oh hey Kelly, what brings you to this side of the dimensional world?" Kelly started to explain everything that had happened in the last month and then passed Heckapoo the letter Dox had left for her. Heckapoo's face went from sad, to happy and ended up with just a sombre smile. Deep down she felt this was too good to be true but with him that's all it ever was.

"So you think he meant me when he mentions someone to help you?" Heckapoo asked passing the letter back.

"I mean.. You are the only woman with a forge that I know and he trusted you so it makes sense to me that it would be you." Kelly replied.

"Well show me what you can do?" Kelly got to work forging small daggers from the materials that Heckapoo gave her. She realised where the green haired girl could improve and instructed her as they carried on. In the beginning the daggers would still break when enchanting but after several hours they had reached a point where even the most fragile was now staying strong. Heckapoo also taught her where she got her materials from but was surprised to see that both her name and her list of places were on Dox's recommendation list. _"He really did trust me, huh?"_ Heckapoo thought to herself as she showed Kelly some more techniques that the girl could practice before she felt she was ready.

"So what's the plan?"

"I'm going to go back to the Parahouse, read through everything he left behind for me and in the morning get onto some of these contacts. I can make the everyday weapons now but I don't want to settle. I want to make sure every weapon I make and sell is worth having no matter the price. Thank you so much!"

"Always" The two hugged before Kelly disappeared back to the Parahouse leaving Heckapoo alone in her forge again. She walked back to the desk and started to pick up some more papers.

Over the last month Heckapoo had pushed forward with her orphanage plans and managed to secure a location. Funding the place was not much of a problem since she never really used the money she received from the Magical High Commission and Kelly had offered to make her some high grade weapons that she could auction off later if need be. The problems came from public opinion. Although Star had been working hard to rid the world of Monster discrimination it seemed like all that hate had been redirected to the poor. Just as she started to think about it her phone rang. Another incident at the building site.

Heckapoo tore open a portal and headed through the streets of Mewni to the building site. She was greeted with a mixed reaction as always. Some people feared her, knowing who she was, this number had dwindled thanks to her being the head of the science division in the battle for Mewni but old habits and all. Some people revered and respected her, greeting her with a bow and a smile but most recently some people, mainly the children, had come to adore her. They ran forward to greet her ignoring their parents, she greeted them all with smiles and performed a trick they liked. She would cut two portals near her so she stuck her head through so it looked like she had a headless body and a floating head that stuck its tongue out to them making all the children laugh. She said goodbye and headed to the site. It was in the area that took most of the damage from the battle which allowed her to buy a large area in the upper part of the kingdom. It was because of this that the site had become a victim to vandalism and repeated protest from nobles who, as they put it, _"Did not wish to share their garden with tomorrow's garbage."_

She knew that if she involved Star she could get it all smoothed over in a heart beat but this was her problem and she'd fix it. Arriving at the site she was greeted with a familiar and unpleasant face.

" _ **Lady**_ Heckapoo, Why is this _'Experiment'_ of yours still continuing?" A snobby looking man spat at her. She couldn't remember his name just that he was a higher noble in the Kingdom who she had rejected his advances before in the past many a time much to his agitation.

"This orphanage I'm building is still going ahead as I want it to and I have given you the formal reply many times so why do you still persist in causing trouble?"

"Trouble? I? I'll have you know that the only trouble here is that you plan to soil the streets of this kingdom with filth and thieves!"

"Children are not filth! And they certainly aren't thieves!" Heckapoo replied trying to keep her cool. She wanted so badly to punch the smug bastard but knew it would only damage her ambitions.

"Well what are they meant to be? Do you have their whole futures planned out? Are you going to support them till they die? No one will want to hire uneducated brats with no families. It's bad enough the peasants have soiled the Knighthood but no where else should suffer!"

"I'll have you know that Lady Higgs is a good friend of mine and I would advice you to be more respectful to those who protect you and your home!" Her nails dug into her palm as she held back her anger.

"Was that a threat!? You are threating **ME!? OUTRAGEOUS!"** He started to yell loudly drawing attention to the pair.

"No.. It wasn't a threat I was just sayin-"

"You've said enough. It's clear that this 'experiment' will lead to a bad end for us all. You have no where for these brats to go and it'll lead to the crime rate soaring!" Heckapoo tried to find the right words to calm the man but no matter what she tried he carried on acting the prideful bigot he was. She felt her hand form into a fist and was about to strike the man when a familiar voice replied to him.

"I can assure you all the children of 'Each Their Own Paradox' will receive full education from 'The Index of Knowledge' and be provided with opportunity to support the kingdom. We shall raise the bar of the kingdom by raising scholars, magicians, knights and a whole generation of capable adults with none of the bill coming to you. The kingdom will flourish and as will your pocket. By just looking past this small grievance you will be remembered as one of the noblemen who led the Butterfly Kingdom into the greatest age it has ever seen. The teachers include myself, Lady Janna and many more capable people. Of course this courtesy will be offered free to your children as well." Glossaryck of Terms floated in between the pair. The man's ego and greed had been tickled.

"Well I suppose I can allow that" The man grinned before storming off. Heckapoo breathed a sigh of relief before turning to see the blue genie.

"Thank you so much! Honestly, I cannot deal with that scumbag!" Heckapoo moaned.

"It's okay my dear, I received your message and came as soon as I could." Glossaryck stroked his beard before looking at the site.

"My message?"

"Yes I found the note from Miss Janna saying that you required my assistance, now don't mind me but I'm going to talk to the building crew. They are the same people I used for the school so I'll assure then that everything is okay."

Heckapoo thought to herself about how Janna would know and wanted to call her but knew the girl wouldn't pick up. She had been avoiding her for the last two weeks ever since Heckapoo had suggested that she tell the others about her memory loss. Heckapoo stood silently thinking about what to do when Glossaryck returned.

"Everything okay Heckapoo?"

"No.. Not really.. I don't know how you dealt with it so well when I tried everything I could to get rid of him and I'm not sure how Janna knew I needed help."

"Well i had similar problems with nobles not wanting the power of magic to become available to anyone but with the right sweet talk and letting them see that the good out weighs the bad for them they all agree in the end and I'm sure you must have mentioned it and forgot. You two are quite close after all."

"I never knew that.. I thought everything went well when you opened up for the school? And.. Well there's some stuff going on and we haven't really spoke lately.."

"It did for the most part but nothing is without its problems and I'm sure you two will be fine with time. I mean you can't avoid each other at the commission meetings so you can always talk there. Anyway I have to be off my child."

"Thanks Glossaryck, I better be going to as I have to head back to sign some more documents." She cut open a portal and disappeared throught it. Glossaryck did the same and arrived back at his school.

As he stepped out of the portal he noticed a load of papers fly across the room. He looked in the corner of the office expecting to see Janna there waiting but only found a pile of books in a mound. He waved his hands and they all flew back on their shelves revealing a tired looking witch.

"Janna have you not been to bed yet?" Glossaryck asked concerned. She evidently was shocked to see him after just waking up and fell off her chair. She pulled herself back up and sat back into the chair readjusting the mess of hair upon her head.

"Can't sleep. I need to finish the research I'm doing.. I've also had to mark the test papers for the students. I can't keep doing this! I have to write individual papers and mark them as the class ability is so diverse."

"What do you mean? I thought your classes were going well?"

"They are.. I just.. I have several students who still suffer from mana poisoning as they can't control their magic. Some who hurt themselves as they know what they're doing but need more one on one training and then I've got a prodigy who excels at everything and it makes it so difficult for me to jump between all these people and try to match them." Janna brushed the hair out of her face with her hand so she could see Glossaryck properly. The genie looked at her worried.

"I will deal with our lack of teacher problem I promise and in the mean time feel free to push some of the lower students onto the teaching aids. They're there to help you Janna and they will if you let them.."

"Okay... Where did you go anyway?" Janna asked trying to change the subject.

"I went to visit our dear Heckapoo, I got your note saying she needed help so went to her aid. You really should get back in touch with her she's worried." Glossaryck raised his eyebrow making Janna aware she was being given a lecture. She wasn't sure what note Gloss was talking about but she realised she could have wrote one and forgot it so pushed the thought out of her head.

"Okay I will soon.." Janna said to get him off her back again.

"Good. Now tell me about this prodigy of yours, it's unusual for you to talk so highly of anyone."

"Well at first he annoyed me. He reminded me so much of Dox it's scary. He had bright blue hair and eyes, a small blue heart under his right eye, dresses in a smart casual way but always wears a blue flower on him. He came in the first batch of students and no matter what I set him he either already seems to know it or can learn to do it within a day or two. He seems like he is hungry to learn more as well.. I mean he is good company and tends to help me out by making me a drink when I get stressed but he's strange." Janna explained. Glossaryck thought about the boy she described and realised he probably should be looked into. The way she described him he could be another Dox. He was about to call the boy to the office when the phone rang, which he proceeded to answer.

"Janna I have to go, one of my students just blew a hole in the wall and damaged the structure of the east wing. See if maybe that student will help with your research. We'll talk later just try to relax for now!" Before Janna could even reply Gloss was gone disappearing through the wall headed for the source of carnage. He figured if the student helped her with the research they could keep a closer watch on him.

Janna packed up her bag and left the office. Walking through the halls of the magic school had always amused Janna. You had to think fast and move faster as books whizzed pass your head and flew towards the classrooms. Students would practice magic in the halls so you could walk past a student turning themselves into an animal, bubbles that do strange things to people floating by or the one girl that liked to turn everything into chocolate. Janna had made sure to get on her good side after learning it was an inherit skill and couldn't be learnt. Turning left, she walked across the courtyard to see who she had been looking for. A blue haired boy sat meditating floating off the ground. Around him he was enveloped in a blue aura and flying around him, as if drawn to his calming energy, was a variety of butterflies. It was a soothing sight for the tired witch. She walked forward and flicked him on the forehead breaking his concentration and making him crash to the floor, scattering the butterflies.

"Really Miss? You said you'd stop doing that?"

"Can't help myself its like your asking for trouble"

"Well Miss what can I do for you?" Asked the blue haired boy whilst rising to his feet.

"For one, stop calling me Miss! I told you my name is Janna.. Jan-Na!"

"Sorry Janna it's just hard to adjust. I know you said since we're the same age and that we should be friends rather than teacher and student but its hard to adjust. I mean the rest of the class already think you favour me and this won't help that rumour?"

"Vu Jade Agape, That's your name right? I call you Jade because your other names are weird. I honestly have no idea what the people who named you were thinking with that one. However, I do not favour you I just enjoy your company as you are a capable person who doesn't annoy me.. Anymore."

"I get that.. I think I do anyway but you still should see what they mean?" Jade replied concerned.

"Well so what! Anyway I wanted to ask if you would help me with my research. I'm struggling at the moment to finish it with all the work I've got and i could use an assistant and if anyone complains let them!" Janna struck a pose that made Jade laugh.

"Well I'd like that so yeah sure Janna."

"Good, well we can start tomorrow anyway I'm gonna go get some sleep its getting late." Janna began to walk away when Jade grabbed her hand.

"Yes?"

"I forgot to mention that some blonde girl was looking for you earlier. I knew you'd be sleeping so I told her you were busy and you'd call her back. Also i think you should answer your phone, that 'Matchstick' as you call her has been trying to reach you for a while.. I know something is up and ignoring it won't help" Jade stared at her sincerely. His honest and innocent gaze unsettled get enough that she wanted to get away. It was bad enough that Glossaryck had brought it up but now him too.

"Aww there was me thinking you finally got the courage to ask me out on a date. Don't keep a lady waiting to long" Janna winked at him causing him to blush and loosen his grip. She walked away leaving him standing there confused. For someone who seemed to have it all together he was very vulnerable to any kind of flirting. Janna would usually have taken advantage and teased him to no end but for some reason she felt like it was wrong to do that to him. She shook off the thoughts and picked up her phone, there was only one blonde Janna knew would be looking for her.

"Hey Star"

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"Thanks Janna I'll catch you later, Byee" Star hung up the phone and turned to the first person present she needed to address.

"So Eclispa it's as I've been saying I think I've finally found somewhere where you can truly put your skills to use."

"Go on dear?" Eclipsa sipped her tea while listening attentively. Although she had enjoyed not being the victim of persecution she had grown bored in her life. She, her husband and their daughter had been living a quiet life hidden thanks to the royal family but she still worried what was to happen when Meteora grew enough that people recognised her.

"I'm sure you've heard of 'Index Of Knowledge', the school Glossaryck opened and Janna now works in."

"Why yes! I was so surprised when little Glossaryck opened the school as we had talked about it when i was younger."

"Yeah, he mentioned. Well I want to give the school royal backing. It will allow the school to function better with less restrictions and let them all breathe easy under the protection of the crown. However, with things like this, generally a member of the family would have to stay at the school and teach. Mum and Dad wouldn't be able to do it and I don't have the time with all the work I'm trying to do so I thought hard and realised the perfect solution. I discussed it with Janna just now who said it was a great idea and here it is. I want you to go to the school as the royal overseer. With your status as Queen of Mewni still intact you would be able to do the job with no questions asked, you always loved learning and teaching me stuff and Glossaryck mentioned you once said you'd like to teach. One reason i think you should consider this is for yourself, i know your bored of doing nothing and being at the school you'd be busy, have a place to do research and best of all if the school succeeds under your care your reputation would rise. If it succeeds then Meteroa will be able to attend and if people saw she was being trained to control her magic and not a threat she could have a happy and easy life.

Another reason is that if you accept I can give you also the position of Royal Educator. It's not much but it would give you more power and authority than you have now. I know you said you don't wish to take the crown from our family and this would let you not do that but still be a part of the inner fold. And finally, I need all the help I can get with improving the kingdom and the way it thinks and with your help I think that would be a lot easier. So please consider it?" Star looked up from her desk to see Eclipsa beaming her brightest smile at the girl. She looked stunned, surprised and overjoyed all at once.

"Ermm Eclipsa..?" Star speaking again broke her free from whatever weirdness she was caught up in.

"I accept!"

"Really! That easily? No questions?" Star was preparing for a lengthy battle to persuade the woman so was shocked when she had instantly accepted.

"Yes really, Star sweetie this is amazing. It's everything I could have asked for. I'd get to be a teacher, work alongside Glossaryck, improve the Kingdom, Protect my daughter and finally repay you for everything you've done for me. I'd be foolish not to accept so yes I accept!" Star leapt forward and hugged the woman who returned her hug.

"Okay sweetie I'm going to go get my stuff ready then head to the school. I know its late but the sooner we talk to Glossaryck the sooner we can get started can't we? I'll wait for you outside little birdman." Eclispa said her goodbyes to Star and to Ludo and left the room.

"Ermm Star Butterfly? Why am I here?"

"Well I wanted to thank you for everything first of all. For helping the Kingdom while I wasn't here during the Battle.. For protecting my friends and family and for showing me that there is still so much good in you." Ludo's eyes seemed to sparkle under the shower of thanks.

"I also asked you to come as I want you to join the magic school. You still have some of the wand's power inside you. When you were separated from Toffee and the wand it stayed and I know you have been struggling to control it." Ludo went to speak but Star answered him as if she knew his question.

"Your brother told me. Anyway I want you to go as both as a Prince of Mewni and as a Monster. I want you to be an example that all is well between us and magic school is for everyone including monster kind. Plus I think it'd be cool for you to be a proper magic user. You were so much more interested in learning from Glossaryck than I was and you deserve the chance to. I just want you to have a future you can be proud of after everything that's happened." Star looked down at the little bird. His large eyes were now filling with tears as he wiped the snot from his beak.

"Star Butterfly.. Thank you" Star smiled down before reaching into her desk and grabbing all the forms he would need and a small present. She passed it to the short greyish-green bird who opened it revealing a bone handed wand. In the centre was not the half star Ludo was familiar with but a green feather.

"It's nowhere near as powerful as my wand and it's more like a catalyst for your magic power but I got Kelly to make you it so that you could manage better at school and given time it will infuse with your magic and could go onto to be stronger. One day it could even be the Avarius family wand." Ludo looked so happy he might explode. He bowed quickly to Star and ran from the room. Down the hall she could hear him cheering in joy. From her window she could see Eclipsa opening a portal and Ludo skip to join her both vanishing into the portal. Star smiled again glad that it had gone so well with them both. She turned to a board on the wall and uncovered it.

The board was covered in a list of objectives, Star crossed three off. 'New Teacher For Magic School', 'Future For Eclipsa/Meteora' and 'Restoring Monster Rule'. The last one was being handled by Tom as she spoke. He had left to go meet the last descendants of the ruling family. So far, she and him had gotten in contact with several families. Some no longer wished for the rule and instead offered up the lands to the kingdom officially supporting the actions it has taken. Some were glad and were having their kingdoms rebuild with the Butterfly Kingdom's aid. The last family line had been harder to track but they finally had a lead and Tom had offered to take care of it and left earlier that day. Lately he seemed quiet as if something was on his mind.. Star was worried what it could be.

Tom, on the other hand, was cheerfully walking to the far corners of the lands the following day bright and early. Beside him walked Marco and Higgs who were on a separate mission in the same direction.

"You seem awfully chipper today Prince Tom? Any particular reason?" Higgs asked trying to make conversation. She usually had a good time with these two but for some reason Marco was unusually quiet and Tom was so high on cloud nine that the difference was unsettling.

"Well Lady Higgs, once we've completed this mission I'm on today we would have restored all the monster families to power and Star can take a breather. I plan on taking her out somewhere special as a celebration and when the moment is right I plan on proposing to her" Tom beamed with a big smile.

"Oh my! That's amazing congratulations! Or... Well good luck. I knew it was right to place my bets on you hey!" She joked. She looked at Marco expecting a response but he was still down.

"Thanks, well once of us had to get round to asking. Personally Marco I'm amazed you haven't asked yet. What's keeping you man!?" Tom joked nudging Marco's side. He sort of laughed along to the joke but it wasn't genuine.

"Not sure Tom. Anyway we have to head off here so we'll catch you later." Marco and Higgs said their goodbyes and headed east. They were headed towards a border town after a distress signal had been sent out but since neither had been there before they couldn't travel by scissors.

Tom waved them goodbye before continuing down the forest path he was on until he met up with a well dressed owl like monster.

"Greeting Prince Thomas" Professor Barnus said politely.

"Hey Prof, you know you can just call me Tom?" Tom replied. Only his parents ever called him Thomas and it was strange for him to hear it outside the Underworld.

"I can go as far as Thomas but that it all, anyway, I believe I have convinced her to speak to you."

"Really? Honestly it is still surprising that you are such a good friend of the last heir of the Lycanthrope Kingdom. I mean it is amazing luck really."

"That it is, I feel that if not for the talk I had with them they would have refused to meet any envoy. Unlike a lot of the other monsters the Lycan beasts were particularly hunted for their pelts. They are few in number and even fewer would trust outsiders."

"I understand Barny don't worry.. Thank you for this."

"Don't mention it, the Princess has accomplished great achievements for my kind and also she graciously blessed Ruby and I's engagement. I want to repay her for everything she's done. Go on inside, she is waiting for you." Barnus pointed into the hut beside him. Before Tom moved he noticed Barnus' face change into a frown. He wasn't sure why but he felt a little unnerved by the change in demeanour.

Tom looked at the hut and was worried about what was inside. He pushed against the rotting wooden door that was hanging off its hinges. Tom walked across the room noticing that everything inside the house was old and broken. The floors and walls were covered scratches and claw marks. Tom finally pushed through the door to a darkened room. He looked around to see a pair of yellow eyes staring at him.

"Erm.. Hello, My name is Tom Lucitor, I am the Prince of the Underworld and I am here to speak on behalf of the Butterfly Kingdom and many Kingdoms across Mewni. We are trying to right the wrongs of previous generations and restore the royalty from the Monster Kingdoms. We heard from Professor Barnus that you are the last living descendants of the Lycanthrope Kingdom.. Would you be interested in restoring the Lycan Beasts?" Tom asked. The eyes disappeared and then reappeared close to his face. He felt something he hadn't in years.. Fear. He felt like prey that was being observed.

Tom felt himself take a step back and the eye got closer till Tom was pinned against the wall. He felt a hand move past him and hit the wall. The light came on blinding Tom and revealing the other individual in the room. She was covered in fur from head to toe with sharp claws. Her fur was a light brown and complemented her piercing yellow eyes. Her clothes were worn and tattered. She retreated back to the corner of the room never letting her eyes leave Tom.

"..Luna.."

"What?" Tom replied confused.

"My name is Luna.." She never took her eyes off him.

"Okay.. Princess Luna.. Would you be interested in restoring the Lycanthrope Kingdom?" Tom wasn't really sure how to deal with the beast woman in front of him so he decided to stick with the plan.

"I can't.. Not alone."

"Not alone? What do you mean?"

"I cannot do it alone. I need my partner." Just as she finished speaking a small thud came from the cupboard. She opened the door and two small balls of fur fell out. Tom looked at them closer and noticed that they were small children.

"Cubs are hungry. I need my partner. He has not returned. Missing like the rest." She managed to say before picking up her cubs. One of them squirmed free and then crawled over to Tom. He picked it up and smiled at it. It crawled onto his head and hung from his horns. Luna walked over a took the cub before settling them onto the bed. She began to hum a small song to the cubs and soon they both fell asleep.

"What do you mean missing like the rest?"

"Monsters, Mewman both missing. Missing for a while. They go out and not come back. I warned him. I warned Sun not to go. He went to find food. Never came back. Disappeared like the rest." Luna turned her back to Tom for the first time. It was clear she was trying to hide her tears.

"Where did he go before he went missing?"

"He headed east. Town with Mewman. These Mewman not chuck stones at us. We go there for food."

"Wait.. East? Do you mean Pepper Town?" Tom asked concerned.

"Yes. You know of it?"

"Some friends are mine are going to investigate it. We received a distress signal. It must be about that. Don't worry I'm sure they'll get to the bottom of it. In the mean time we want to get you somewhere safe and we plan on rebuilding your Kingdom. We'll need your help to design it however you wish and help locate any members of your kind. I'll keep in touch with the two investigating and try to find out what's happening." Luna picked up her cubs and followed Tom outside where Barnus was waiting. The Professor picked up on something being wrong with Tom while Tom seemed to realise what the frown Barnus had showed meant now.

"Thomas, Is everything okay?"

"Did you know?" Tom replied sharply.

"Know what?"

"Did you know that people have been going missing? Did you know that Sun, Luna's partner was missing as well?" Tom grabbed him by the feathers causing Luna to growl at him.

"Yes. Yes I knew."

"Why didn't you say anything!?" Tom yelled at him.

"Because this isn't the sort of thing that needed extra attention. I encouraged the townspeople to put in the distress signal so that it would be investigated. I also knew that you'd come here to find Luna. I've done it this way because this way it gets investigated but people aren't panicking and worrying." Tom let him go. He wanted to tell him that he was wrong and call him out but deep down he knew that Barnus was right. The last thing needed right now as the Kingdoms are being restored was missing people cases.

"You should have at least told someone like me or Star. We could have helped discreetly!" Tom breathed out and tried to calm down. He wasn't sure why he was so worried. It was Marco after all and he had Higgs with him, they would probably be fine. He called Star and let her know what was going on before cutting a portal back to the castle. He and the others walked through leaving the aged hut abandoned.

Tom tried repeatedly to call Marco and let him know what was going on but he could never connect the call. He would have gone to investigate over the coming days had it not been for Higgs sending the signal that all was okay every day. For some unknown reason they could receive the knight's signal but not send one back. Tom had to wonder if the other two were okay and tried to put it out of his mind. He and Star had taken all the available knights and forces that could be spared from the castle to go to rebuild the Lycanthrope Kingdom. The destination was in the western territory of Mewni and many of the Lycan beasts had been found and welcome to help with the restoration of the kingdom.

* * *

/

Over the last few days after departing from Tom, Higgs and Marco had headed to Pepper Town to investigate the signal. When they reached there they discovered that people had gone missing. It reminded Marco of the incident at Christmas that himself, Dox and Kelly had put a stop to. The pair investigated the townspeople and patrolled the borders looking for any clues. They couldn't seem to find any motive or evidence. There were rumours that something had taken the people to feed or that there was a vengeful spirit but all the rumours led to dead ends. After almost a week of nothing the pair retired to the Inn they were staying in to rest. While waiting for their food Higgs decided to break up the tension.

"So Red, you never did tell me why you chose me to be your knight? I mean any of the other knights would have loved to have the 'The Red Knight of Legend' join them as their squire. Why did you pick me?" Higgs stared him down. He usually would blow off their talks and try to avoid it but he knew when that wasn't an option.

"I thought if it was with you.. You wouldn't let me have it easy."

"Explain dufus!"

"Like that! You still treat me as me. I'm just Marco to you, a squire who doesn't deserve to get to have it easy. This last month you have not let me slack off even once. I've worked my ass off to impress you and live up to your standards and even when I've done my best, which for anyone else would have been above standard, you shot me down faster than Star can find trouble. With you I knew I'd get to be a proper squire, this was about earning my knighthood and you are the only person who would let me earn it properly." Marco admitted not meeting her eye.

"You know.. I don't think you don't deserve this? You have had to go through so much to get where you are.. I'm not comparing my years of squirehood to you anymore you know that right?" Marco looked up.

"Really?"

"Yes you idiot! This last month I have made you do so much more than I ever had to do and you did it! I'm surprised I haven't been punished for abuse after making you do so much. Every mission we went on big or small, you have had my back and kept me going. I've learnt as much from you as you have from me and thanks to you I'm growing to be a better knight. The other knights may have respected you but they all saw my knighthood as a reward for being the Princess' friend in your absence. They thought I sucked up to her to get a hand out." Higgs confessed downing her drink.

"WHAT! How can they think that! You fought in the battle for mewni and its thanks to your actions that I was able to return and some of the others survived!"

"Yeah and then I was sent to baby sit the elderly and the children. They can judge me all they like though as I know I earned this.."

"..and so do I!"

"Yeah and you Red. You know it's nice to see you actually express some emotion, you've been kind of a dead weight this last week. I'd have thought the days you spent with Kelly before we left would have brightened you up not depressed you."

"..Yeah.. sorry.."

"That's what I mean! Why are you doing that! You are not one of those green teenage ninja things you showed me. Get your head out your shell and tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing."

"Marco. I know somethings wrong.. And it got worse after Tom made that joke about proposing.. Are you worried she might say no if you ask or something?"

"No.."

"Then what!?"

"She already said No okay." Marco slammed his fist down in anger shocking the girl.

"What?"

"I proposed to Kelly 2 weeks ago and she said no. She had started to struggle with her forging and I wanted to lift her spirits. I had planned it for quite a while and I took her to the top of the glass mountain. The one where when the moonlight shines on it the glass refracts the light and the colours dance across the sky. I told her how much I loved her and how I wanted to be with her forever and she said no. Never told me why. Since then I haven't been able to talk to her in my head and we've barely seen each other."

"But you spent your days off with her... that's what you said?"

"I lied. After she said no she ran off. I didn't have it in me to chase after her I was too shocked so I called Nacho and just flew. I ended up in the wastelands and found a criminal den. They had a fight club where no questions are asked but you can just blow off steam and I spent 3 days just fighting anyone who would fight me. In the end I came back and lied about where I was."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Higgs asked her throat growing dry.

"What was I meant to say? The girl I love didn't want to marry me and I don't know why! What? Is that enough for you or would you like me to list how it made me feel to be left kneeling down holding out the ring?" Higgs slapped him across the face causing him to glare at her.

" **YES** you idiot! **I AM YOUR FRIEND!** I am your mentor and I am the person who is responsible for your life right now! Your parents, Star, Kelly, Dox. Whoever it is doesn't matter as right now you are my ward and my friend and you should tell me what's wrong with you! Get your head in the game Marco!" She sat back and began to devour her food that the waitress had brought over. He ran his hand across his cheek feeling the warmth from her slap. He turned to say something to her but decided to eat his food first. For some reason it had a really familiar metallic taste to it. He tried to remember where he had tasted it before when it came to him.

 _"So... let me get this straight. You want me to start eating my food with small amounts of poisons and strange potions inside it?" Marco looked up from his plate to see Dox shrugging back to him._

 _"Look, you need to build up a tolerance to this stuff. It's one thing to be able to tell when it's in your food but what's the good in that if you are already poisoned or unconscious. Part of your training is to build up a tolerance to all this stuff." Dox replied smiling._

 _"Oh really? Why don't you do it to?" Marco asked sliding the vial of sleep potion over to him. Dox smiled and downed the whole bottle before burping._

 _"What makes you think I didn't?" Dox joked._

 _"What the hell! Don't do that! That could damage your stomach!"_

 _"Oh my stomach will be fine. It's just the taste I can't stand. Most poisons and potions use some form of metal in the makeup and it leaves it with a metallic taste. It's horrible to be honest." Dox laughed pulling another vial from his pocket._

 _"Well please just don't do that again."_

 _"Deal, you ready?"_

 _"As I'll ever be." Dox poured a few drops onto his food which Marco proceeded to eat. The last thing he remembered before banging his head on the table and falling asleep was that taste._

Marco quickly reached forward and knocked the fork from Higgs' hand.

"What the hell?"

"It's got a sleeping agent inside it. Don't move too fast as I don't know how much you've eaten and how many people we're surrounded by." Marco whispered his eyes scanning the room. He looked away from the table before hearing a thud. Looking back her saw Higgs had passed out. He quickly stood up and blocked the chair one of the people in the room had tried to hit him with.

Marco counted, there were 8 people in the room he could easily take them. The first one with the chair he had taken out by punching in the throat and tripping him up. He ran at the next one dodging the knife he swung and knocked him clean out with a high kick to the face. He dropped down dodging one who ran at him, rising up and throwing him through the window. Marco heard him groan and not get up outside.

Realising he was still more active than they hoped the fourth and fifth person ran at him together trying to take him from either side. They swung their swords at him one going high and one low. Marco jumped between them spinning his whole body in mid-air before dropping to the floor. He grabbed one's head and raised his knee while jumping shattering his skull. The other tried to slice him but he caught the blade before pulling the man forward and head butting him.

 **"Stop or she gets it."** Marco turned to see the six and seventh person holding two knifes to Higgs' throat. He could see one pressing hard enough to draw blood. He froze and held his hand up. The eighth person came up behind him and kicked the back of his legs forcing him to the ground. Number seven walked forward kicking Marco in the head knocking him out. They picked up the unconscious pair and dragged them to a wagon setting fire to the inn as they left. The men who were unconscious were left inside to burn as they pulled away into the night.

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you for reading and I hope you liked the chapter :) Thank you all for being patient with the upload schedule and hope the wait was worth it. I tried to make this chapter flow a little more having everything happen over the course of a few days. With each segment connecting to the next with links all over. Also 10 points to whoever can work out the secrets behind Vu Jade Agape :) there are two in Jade's full name.**

 **If you have any questions or comments feel free to message me or leave a review and I'll always try to reply. I'd love to know your thoughts on the chapter pacing and see if its something to work with in the future.**

 **Thank you all again :3**


	4. The Measures We Take

**Keeping Your Promise#4**

 **The Measures We Take**

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 **A/N: Hello all :) Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy. For this chapter I have decided to do two smaller chapters with #4 and #5 creating a bit more suspense and letting me add more to the story :)**

 **Kerbolius: Your review made me laugh as a literal storm has been brewing inside the story XD and Jannade is confirmed X'D I wrote it originally not intended for them two to have chemistry but I loved the way they bounced off of each other so I won't stop you :). You will have to wait for those other things but I want the minor characters to be more in the story as in the show is the background characters that help create the main characters :) Ludo actually has a big role in the coming chapter #5 :) anyway hope you enjoy.  
**

 **Slimster22: Well Snap X'D You got me! I wrote it that way to mean both, he is almost the same but also nothing like him so it added well and yeah I remembered the word Agape from Yuri On Ice as Innocent Love which is what one would feel towards a god :) I wanted to not make it too hard but I'm starting to feel like I should have tried harder :) Thank you for reading and taking the time to answer though**

 **Lord Demon: Honestly thats interesting as hell but I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to make it fit into the story as I already have it planned out and don't plan to include Earth at all. Although that would be an awesome story :) You should have a go at writing it as I think it'd be a great read and I'd love to read it.**

 **Lerans: Thanks again for understanding :) Marco took it severely bad. It's a lot more apparent in this chapter that it has lasting consequences on them both. Marco isn't in a good place both mentally and now physically and it's going to show. Thanks :) I always found myself that when things are going well they are** **usually** **too good to be true and that there is always some hurdle to overcome. It's these hurdles that make the end goal worthwhile. Hope you enjoy the chapter and lemme know what you think :) I've already written a lot of #5 as I wanted to break these two down so shouldn't be long now.**

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 **/**

As she opened her eyes Higgs tried to see the room around her but her vision was clouded. She decided to go by what she could tell with her other senses. She was laying on her side with her face on the ground. She could feel the damp dirt on her cheek. She felt the rope rub against her skin and flinched as her skin was raw. This and how dry her mouth felt let her know she had been out of it for a while now. She went to move when a voice spoke.

"Stay down Higgs"

"Marco?"

"Yeah it's me, try not to move as you've been unconscious for a while. I'll pick you up one second." Higgs still wasn't able to see clearly when she felt his firm hands slide around her body and lift her so she was sitting against the wall. He untied her restraints and she felt a soft wet cloth upon her face. She sat in silence as he cleaned the dirt from her face, she felt the cold water drip from her cheek and onto her chest shuddering from the unpleasant feeling it gave her. When he was done she found her eyes adjusting to the room.

It was dimly lit from some stray moonlight creeping in from behind a small barred off window. She could see that they were in some sort of cell in an aged building. Across the dirty and bloody stone walls were a mix of engraved messages and claw marks, in the light she had she couldn't make any of them out. Looked over to see Marco's back as he squeezed off the cloth in a bucket. His clothes were torn and dirty. He had none of his weapons and his hair was clinging to his head.

"What happened?" Higgs managed to say. Her throat felt so dry that it might close up. She heard Marco sigh before taking a seat beside her. She didn't have the energy to look directly at him but felt the warm from his hand as it connected with hers. The warmth from him was a small comfort in a rather dire situation.

"We were ambushed. They poisoned our food with some sort of sleeping poison. It seemed to attack our nervous system paralysing the body while leaving you unconscious. Before with Dox, he got me to build up natural resistances to most toxins and poisons so I resisted most of the effects. Everyone else in the inn was one of them. I tried to fight them off but they held you hostage. I know what you want to say but I couldn't let you die so i surrendered. Next thing I knew I woke up here." She could hear pain in his voice.

"What are you not telling me?"

"Always so perceptive aren't you?"

"Just spill the beans Red?"

"It's been over a week since we've been here. I don't know why but you haven't woke up once. I've kept you hydrated by attaching an IV drip to you. Every day they come in here blindfold me and then take me to a room. It's a strange room like a theatre where people are watching you from above. They make me fight to survive."

"There's no one that could seriously challenge you though?" Higgs asked. She heard Marco get up beside her when he knelt down in front of her. The moonlight illuminated his body. His hair, seemingly glued to his hair, was drenched in blood. Whether it was his or not Higgs wasn't sure. He had various scars and scabs all over his face. His torn clothes on his chest let Higgs see all the bruises that covered him. She raised her hand to stroke his cheek and he winced in pain. He smiled to comfort her but she could see he had some teeth missing and realised that one of his eyes were clouded. She moved her hand to it and when he didn't react she realised he couldn't see out of it.

"What the hell Marco!? How did they do this to you? Why haven't you healed yourself?" Higgs pulled him in for a hug. She felt his head begin to shake as it finally started to sink in.

"They put something in me.. It's a different kind of poison. It's not something i could be prepared for. It attacks the magic in your body stopping you from using your power properly. The original poison is still there as well, meaning occasionally my body is slower than i need it to be or my nerves mess up. I'm made to fight unarmed against swords, spears and more. I lost the vision in my left eye after a mage they brought in blasted me with a light spell from close range. But I've won every single day and killed everyone they put against me. It was the only way I could protect you" Higgs felt her heart grow heavy and felt all the weaker for it. She raised her hand and tried to channel her magic and felt the warmth from a flame as it burst into her hand.

"Marco.. I still have my magic I can get us out of here!" Higgs lifted his head to see him giving her a look of pity.

"It isn't enough Higgs.. I would be a dead weight to you.. And the only reason they haven't put the magic poison in you is because you were asleep still. Come morning, they'll bring enough to subdue us both.." Marco pulled himself free from her hands and went to the corner of the room. She heard him dig something out of the dirt and return to her.

"So what? Your giving up? After everything? You are just gonna give up!? What about Kelly? Star? Tom? Janna? What about Dox? Are you just going to let him down?" Marco started to laugh which just confused her more.

"I haven't given up I've been waiting. I needed you to wake up if either of us were going to have any chance of escaping." Marco leant forward and put a necklace onto her. She could feel the weight of a locket on her chest.

"Marco.. What?"

"It's a message, with everything I managed to find out so far and the possible places we could be"

"How is that going to help us? It's here with us?" Higgs wondered if he had taken more hits to his head than he realised.

"Well that's simple. Soon enough it won't be in here with me and neither will you." Marco held his hand to his chest and his hand began to glow. He pushed the hand against Higgs' chest and she felt heat flow into her body. Before she could even ask he carried on speaking.

"It's my tattoo, the one Kelly gave me. It isn't just a piece of art its a telepathic communication method. However, we haven't been speaking lately after she said no and it closed off the link between us. There was one added feature I persuaded her to put into it though. If either us was ever in a drastic situation we can use the tattoo to tap into each others magic and portal to the others location."

"Wait.. You could have left anytime? Why are we still here?"

"Because its a ticket for one and I wasn't going to leave you behind."

"What and you think I will? I would never choose to leave you behind!?"

"Not your choice" Marco pushed his hand onto the tattoo and Higgs felt her body being to grow lighter. She tried to grab him but it was no use as she disappeared from the prison cell in a blast of light. Marco smiled before picking up the bucket and standing against the wall. He faced the door to the cell when a large group of people came into view. They looked down to see his companion missing. Marco laughed and prepared himself.

"Come on then you arseholes. Come get some!" They burst into the cell and he smacked the first one with the bucket shattering it across their head. The next he kicked in the crotch and pulled his head into his knee. He tried to get a punch off on another when he felt his body fill with electricity. He tried to ignore it but it was enough to lower his guard. One of the attackers smacked him over the head with a club forcing him to the ground. He quickly tried to stand but it was too late as the group began to kick him and stomp on his until he was unable to move. They threw a load of water over him before chaining him to the wall of the cell. He looked past the blood and water coming from his head as they left him alone again.

"Sorry Kells, I might not make it home this time.."

* * *

/

Dox watched furiously throwing his sword at the screen of the TV. It smashed the screen to pieces but within seconds the sword was beside it and the TV repaired. He tried to switch channels but it had shown no one but Marco ever since he got kidnapped.

Dox had tried to send through some aid. He managed to send through the IV Marco had used on Higgs but when he tried to send through medicine and weapons he found that the TV no longer accepted any aid. He smashed the room to pieces and rushed to the front door. The brick wall was no more but all that remained was a black abyss, Dox had reached the point where doing something stupid was preferable to doing nothing and went to walk out the door when a hand grabbed him and threw him back into the house. He looked up to see a furious red head looking down at him.

 **"What do you think you are doing Guardian?"** Fate asked the angry man.

"I am going to help them! Why is the TV not working anymore!" He yelled at her angrily before rising and trying to get past her. She pushed him back and he went flying back into the main room of the house and crashing onto a chair breaking it.

 **"Stop being stupid. If you had walked into the abyss you would have been lost forever. The TV never stopped working either."**

"Then why can't I push anything else through to help them?"

 **"Because, My faithful Index, they do not require your aid. This is their challenge and their trial and they must overcome it. The times you have helped before have been trivial and does not affect their path as champions. They will not die just yet. That is when you can truly intervene."** Dox glared at the goddess as she waltzed into the room. She waved her hand and he found himself sitting in the study with her at his desk. She span in his chair before slamming her hands on the table.

 **"And anyway I thought you sent the Apostle of Love in your place? Why worry?"**

"How am I meant to be their guardian if I can't assist them when they are in danger? And I did but he is hardly going to be able to help Marco is he?" Dox suddenly felt pain as she flicked him in the face.

 **"Remember who you're talking to Mr. I will not have every action I take questioned. You are their Guardian and I told you that you will know what to do when the time comes, now is not the time. If you had intervened and helped them then they would never have found the group that holds Marco presently. By sending for aid with the young Lady he has ensured they find his location and the 'bad guys'. We need them to find the trail of a god and protecting them from a little harm shall do no good. You taught the boy yourself and yet you have so little confidence in him"** Fate raised her eyebrow at him questioning him but also challenging him to answer back.

"I trust Marco and believe in him. I just hate not being able to help him." Dox slumped in the chair. He knew there was no point arguing with the Goddess, not just because she was right but because she wouldn't listen anyway.

 **"Good, well I'm here for two reasons, not to stop you killing your soul off. One to inform you that I am confident that the person who is plotting against us is actually the God of War."**

"Why? What does he have to gain from ruining their lives?"

 **"It's actually rather simple really.. He's War. War desires exactly that.. War. He wants violence, bloodshed and hatred to fill the world and much to his annoyance we currently have the best generation of peace keepers being raised. My champions and their friends are bringing in an age of acceptance, peace and prosperity. He hates that and has clearly been working in the shadows with his apostle to stop that. I don't know who the apostle is and confronting him will achieve nothing as the Gods are forbidden from fighting one another."**

"What can we do?" Dox was feeling rather small and was unsure how exactly a few mortals would be able to stop the plans of a God.

 **"Watch Index, watch the children of fate and the champions of good that we have created as they take down the Apostle of War. God's can't fight Gods but mortals can fight mortals and when Marco, Star and their peers rise up to fight for their lives and loves they will be victorious."**

"How can you be so sure?"

 **"Because, I like you, am just a watcher. I can only had faith in the ones I have chosen to guide the future and fate of all."** Fate sighed. She stood up and walked to the door before stopping. Walking back she placed a silver vial full of light blue liquid on table.

"What is it?"

 **"The second reason I came.. Plan B. It is life essence. If you were to drink this you would regain your life and return to the realm of the living."**

"You want me to drink this?" Dox picked the vial up.

 **"No, I support your choice to wait here and keep your vow. However, I feel like this will be needed and like always, you will know what to do when the time comes."** Dox looked down at the vial before looking up to see her gone. He put the vials in his pocket before heading back into the main room. Fate had fixed all the damage he had done before she left. He sat on the sofa with his head in his hands. What was the right choice? The question that circled round in his mind again and again trying to seek an answer. He looked up at the TV to see how Marco was doing when he realised it was no longer watching Marco but Kelly. He rushed forward to watch hoping everything would be okay.

* * *

/

Kelly ran across the courtyard of the castle using her coat to try to hide from the rain. She had headed back from the construction site in the Lycanthrope territory. After setting her apprentices to handle the rest of the work she had rushed back. It had been over 2 weeks nearing 3 since Marco had left for the mission and for a while now they had stopped receiving updates from Higgs. Kelly had tried to contact Marco through the link but for some reason all she had been getting was static. Kelly hoped that word of their return would be at the castle. The storm that rage on in the sky was causing issues with the mirror phones and portals to malfunction especially over long distances so she had to travel back to Butterfly Kingdom by horse. She rushed to her forge and hoped he would be waiting there for her after not returning to the Parahouse but she found the place empty. She took a seat and began to sigh when she felt pain over the spot where her tattoo was. She felt dizzy all of a sudden and was about to pass out before she grabbed a knife and shoved it into her hand. The pain stopped her from passing out and she looked up as a blast of light threw a body across the room into a pile of scrap metal. She quickly wrapped her hand up and ran to the person. She knew that feeling, it was the emergency portal Marco had invented to use in times of great need. He had managed to find his way back was what she thought but when she rolled the person over she was shocked to find Higgs. She was mumbling random things and Kelly didn't know what to do. She picked her up and opened a portal to the Magic School hoping it would be close enough not to not be disrupted by the storm outside.

Kelly waved her free hand and walked through the black portal before reappearing in Janna's room at the school. She laid Higgs down on the bed and began to treat her wounds. She stripped her off the dirty and wet clothes and realised that aside from the cuts she has received from crashing into the scrap metal she was virtually unharmed. Kelly dabbed a wet cloth onto her forehead when the girl spoke again.

"Marco.. You can't.." The words hit Kelly in the heart as she fully realised that Marco must be in terrible danger. Kelly's eyes were drawn to the tattoo she had on her chest. It was just above her left breast. She ran her fingers across the petals of the blue flower and felt tears start to swell in her eyes realising that Marco had passed it to Higgs to save the girl.

"What's going on?" Kelly looked up to see Janna standing in the doorway with a blue haired boy behind her that Kelly couldn't quite make out.

"I don't know.. I came back to the castle to see if they had come back, Higgs and Marco, and there was still no word when she came crashing into the forge. It was a spell me and Marco made to reunite in emergency situations.. But he passed it to Higgs to save her. She's awake but she isn't responding." Kelly wasn't quite sure how she managed to explain it all so clearly but she had. Janna rushed forward and drew a magic circle over the bed. Light began to fall onto Higgs and her breathing calmed. While Janna was focusing on Higgs, Kelly looked up and for the first time got a good look at Janna's companion. She rushed forward knocking the person down hugging them.

"You came back! How!" She felt tears fall onto him and his hand wiped then away.

"I'm afraid you have me mistaken for someone else ma'am" Kelly lifted her hair and head to look down at the boy. He looked so much like Dox it caused her heart to ache but even she knew that this wasn't him.

"Sorry I.." Kelly wasn't sure what to do.. Her emotions were betraying her and everything seemed to be going wrong. Marco was gone and it felt like Dox had left all over again. She knew deep down that part of her was expecting him to pop up and surprise them all but she knew he would never come back.. You can't cheat death.

As she began to lose herself in her mind and trying to escape reality she felt a warm light start to wrap around her as the boy she tackled spoke to her.

"Ma'am.. I'm sorry I'm not who you want me to be but If it helps I'm sure whoever it is.. He is still watching over you and wouldn't want to see you give up like this.." Jade put his hand on her shoulder to comfort her. Janna looked up and smiled at her little genius. Leaning over Higgs she noticed her eyes start to flicker.

"Higgs? Can you hear me?.." No response came from the girl so Janna sighed. She would have to break a promise she made to the girl.

" _Crystal.._ Crystal Faith Higgs, can you hear me girl?" Janna spoke loudly and clearly. She heard a mumble coming from the girl.

"Nev..all..ehat"

"What?"

"NEVER CALL ME THAT!" Higgs yelled back at her.

"Good to see you too Higgs" Janna smiled at the girl who tried to sit up quickly but fell. Janna helped her to sit up. Kelly quickly covered Jade's eyes realising Higgs was still in just her underwear. Janna grabbed her a set of clothes to wear and the four sat down.

"What's happened? Where is Marco?" Kelly began to ask her but was met with a look of contempt from Higgs.

"Why do you care?"

"What? What do you mean why do I care? I love Marco with all my heart and I need to know he's okay!" Kelly replied angrily.

"Sure you do. How about you clear off." Higgs spat back. Janna and Jade watched on in a mix of bewitched amusement and confusion.

"What the hell Higgs! I'm going no where until I know where Marco is and if he is okay! And although you clearly doubt it.. I love Marco." Kelly replied gritting her teeth. She didn't know why she was so angry at the girl but deep down she knew she was jealous. She hadn't seem Marco in a while and he spent all his time with Higgs and sometimes when she felt lonely she got worried about it.

"But not enough to say Yes to marrying him though?" Kelly was totally taken back by the sudden shot from Higgs whereas Jade replied with _'Oh damn'_ and Janna adding _'Shit just got real!'._

"Yeah. I know. Marco told me how you said no and then just left him there. How you two haven't been speaking even in your heads and all the time we've been in danger he has been trying to call for your help he could never get through. If anything happens to him.."

"What? What are you going to do?. How is our relationship any of your business anyway!"

"It's my business because he is my friend and my squire. I watch his back and he watches mine but he can't do that when you're filling his head with insecurity and doubt! And you wanna know what I'm gonna do? I'll slap you round your stupid little face and kick your arse."

"Exactly! Your his friend! What? Annoyed that someone actually noticed how amazing he was first and took him so you can't have him?" Kelly said spitefully. Higgs quickly rushed forward and pinned her to the wall. All the weakness and fatigue she felt was being supressed with rage.

"I am HIS FRIEND you jealous bitch! I've always know how amazing he is which is why he pisses me off so much but let me make this clear. I love him. Yes. But not like you. He is my friend and someone who has never judged me or expected things from me. He takes me as I am as he does everyone else. I am not special to him yet he would risk everything to save me. Why? Because his reason to come home alive was rejecting him. How do you not realise that you are his beacon." Kelly felt herself be shoved against the wall as Higgs let go and staggered back to the bed. Everyone remained silent as the two girls glared at each other.

"As much as that was interesting.." Janna started putting her phone back into her pocket. "Marco is in danger and I need details so talk." Higgs tore her eyes from Kelly to meet Janna's and told her everything from what the original mission was, to Marco being depressed and distracted. To falling asleep in the Inn and waking up and everything until the moment she woke up in her room. Janna picked up the locker that Kelly had removed from Higgs when she stripped her and opened it. A letter fell to the floor that Jade picked up. Janna nodded at him to read it so he started.

 _"I'm not sure who this will reach as Higgs currently doesn't look like she's going to wake up yet. It's been one week since we were taken and I've done my best to protect us both. They stripped me of my weapons, my scissors, my magic and even took the key to the Parahouse. That was the first clue that this attack was not random. Who really is going to take a random key off of someone while leaving Higgs with her boot dagger. I didn't take it as I knew it would cause more trouble than good but the fact they took the key suggests that they knew what it was. I'm not sure who we are dealing with buy they are organised and dangerous. They have poisons that drain the very magic from your body and people supporting them from the shadow capable of blocking the mirror phone signal. I have made a list of places I think we could be. I remember parts of the journey here as I drifted in and out of consciousness and have been collecting intel for a week now. I think that they took us from the east and went north to the edge of the kingdom where it is colder and closer to the sea. The old ruins of the kingdoms tarnished by time still remain and i narrowed it down to two so I hope you will find me soon. I'm not sure how much longer I can hold out here to be honest with you._

 _P.s Kelly I'm sorry..im not sure why you said no and I've tried to think of the reason but I'm sorry that if this is the end I will never get to say goodbye and tell you how much I love you._

Jade stopped reading and looked up from the paper to see the three girls all crying as they stared at him. He sighed deeply as he could feel the pained love coming from their body. The love for a lover, the love for a friend and the love for family. He knew that if Dox wasn't doing anything he probably couldn't so he would have to take charge with this one. He picked up his phone and called a number that he hoped would connect.

 _"Hello?"_ Dox's voice came through the phone but only Jade could hear.

"I need a favour." Jade whispered so no one could hear him. The other three were still stunned from Marco's letter to pay attention.

 _"Anything."_

"I know you've been watching but can't intervene but you must know where he's being held. Can you give me the location so we can rescue him?" Jade asked hoping for the best down the phone. No reply came at first and Jade began to worry when he heard paper rustling on the other end of the phone.

 _"I've looked up the location on the map and Marco was right. He's in the northeast part of the kingdom in the ruins of the sea tribe. They had a castle build hundreds of years ago to honour the then Queen but it was abandoned and fell into disrepair.. That's where he has to be."_ Dox's voice broke on the other side of the phone.

"I'll save him. Don't worry." Jade hung up the phone to see Janna giving him a strange look. He clapped his hands together getting their attention.

"Suit up Ladies I know exactly where your friend is and we are going to rescue him!" He exclaimed to be met with judging looks.

"Look.. I don't know who you are but this is no time to joke!" Kelly moaned at him.

"Jade I know you think you have all the answers but its not like you could find him in one phone call." Higgs added. They had both met at the magic school before Higgs left with Marco and had become friends.

"Do you really know?" Janna asked him sincerely.

"Yes"

"Then move it ladies we are following bluebell over here!" Janna said picking Kelly to her feet.

"What so we're going to listen to him?" Kelly said sceptically.

"Yes. I trust him and Marco trusts me so you should too." Janna replied.

"We should call the Knights too and get aid?" Higgs suggested.

"We can't, long range portals and communication is down and apart from the skeleton crew the Castle is empty as everyone headed to the Lycanthrope Kingdom."

"What so we're suppose to go after him with me, who is no shape to rescue anyone, a jealous blacksmith, a crazy witch and her pet?" Higgs laughed at her own words realising that they wouldn't be organised enough to do anything.

"Yes but there's also a whole army of mages here in the school who would love some hands on experience and I happen to have a friend who we could get help from to get there too." Jade added with a smirk. Janna suddenly grabbed his ear and pulled him close.

"You want to bring the students?"

"Ouch ouch.. Yes we need the help and with the head master away you are in charge. We need to move fast and they are all we have on hand." Jade winced out. Janna let go and sighed. Just then an idea popped into her head and she ran from the room. She returned a short while later and led everyone to the main hall where they took their seats next to various students.

"Okay peeps, here is the drill. Marco Diaz, Red Knight, Saviour of Mewni, Princess' bestie etc. Is in danger and needs to be helped. Unfortunately thanks to this storm we cannot get aid from the kingdom without risking its protection. As such myself, Lady Higgs, Miss Kelly and your classmate Jade are planning a badly thought out rescue mission and need all the help we can get. Any one who wants to join in will be welcome otherwise you can leave now and return to your dorm." No one in the room moved until a student stood on the table and yelled over.

"Karate boy is in danger?" Ludo called out.

"Yes and he needs our help"

"Then count me in!" Ludo cried in his shrill voice. Seeing such a small and weak looking bird man volunteer seemed to spark a movement as suddenly all the other student stood up and shouted "Me too!" Jade smiled at Janna who smiled back and headed to another room in the school to meet his friend.

"Erm.. Ma'am I think it's time, we are going to need your powers to get to Marco?" He looked in the room to see a fiery girl waiting. Her orange and red dress fluttered as she walked to the door.

"Thanks again Jade.."

"Anything for Miss Janna.." Heckapoo smiled at the comment before rushing to meet up with the rescue party.


	5. For The Ones We Love

**Keeping Your Promise#5**

 **For The Ones We Love**

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 **A/N: The story continues :) Thank you for reading and reviewing and as always I hope you enjoy.**

 **Lerans: The truth of the matter is that the real enemy is still acting behind the scenes controlling everything :) The first story focused more on them and their actions in the small group of Marco, Dox and Kelly but this one is focused on the bigger things including more about the other characters and even the gods haha but I won't forget that, after all I'm relying on just that for this story to continue haha Once again thank you for your support.**

 **Kerbolious: The power is somewhat still a mystery but I added a brief explanation I will explain it more at the end. You defo did call it haha and I could so see Jade being shorter than Janna XD just picturing it made me chuckle.**  
 **Dox's involvement in the story will always be as it has so far in this sequel. No matter what happens he will have to keep trying his best to do what he can even if fate or literally Fate doesn't let him. I kinda wanted to crush the Miggs aspect while showing that they aren't just two people who know each other and Love will be a big part of this :) Fate was Flowers and Stars, as they tried to overcome their fate and survive and Keeping Your Promise is about the Love that they discover and try to preserve. I have actually got to find out how your doing this XD Jade has his own area and his own weaknesses which are explained in this chapter and the next and if you liked Ludo so far I really wanna know your thoughts on his involvement in this chapter.**

 **Damunyo: Thank you :) Hope it continues to earn that praise.**

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Janna tucked the last few strands of her hair under her hat to avoid the wet rain that blasted her face. The wind whipped across the field in front of her moving both grass and trees alike. She looked at the ruins in the distance and turned back to the people behind her.

"So here's the plan. Me, Greenie, Matchstick, Sparkles and Bluebell are going to sneak in while the rest of you bombard the place with magic from a distance and attack anyone that tries to stop you." She said confidently.

"She means me, Kelly, Higgs and Jade" Heckapoo added. The two still hadn't spoken even after Heckapoo had enabled them all to reach their destination and the tension between the two of them was unbearable.

 _"I said that."_ Janna mumbled under her breath.

"Move out, Ludo you're in charge." Janna quickly departed with the rest leaving Ludo with the magic students. He turned to them to be met with glares and dirty looks. Janna probably hadn't noticed but his fellow students were not very fond of their classmate.

"Well shrimp. What now?" Asked one of the boys in the class.

"What's now is that we may as well just go attack. I don't know why Miss Janna put the chicken in charge but we don't need him." Another student protested. They all mumbled in agreement and went to leave.

"Wait.. We need to work together.." Ludo started to say when one of the students pushed him into a muddy puddle.

"Yeah you're right chicken little, we'll work together… away from you." The student laughed before walking away. Ludo didn't blame them for hating him. He had ruined a lot of lives over the years and many still secretly blamed him for the Toffee incident. The children who made up the magic school were the most affected by his antics from being forced to live in poverty or even being injured due to his foolishness. He didn't blame them but he wasn't about to let them get hurt under his watch. He raced after them.

The students had began to throw whatever magic they could at the castle causing it to shake to its very foundations. Their barrage was met with angry cries as people began to swarm out towards them. The students were so focused on the building they didn't even notice the enemy get closer. The ruin's defenders began to try to attack them when multiple green blasts shot across the battlefield sending the enemy flying. A giant green flare flew up into the sky revealing the enemy to the students who blasted them before looking up to see Ludo floating in the sky.

"Hate me all you want.. You deserve to.. But you can't hate me if you are dead. So live. Listen to me and live. Those of you with long range fire and other elemental attacks keep blasting the castle from the back. Those with physical or short range magic move to the front and keep away the bad people. Any healers stay at the very back till we need you and everyone focus on control, we don't want any cases of friendly fire. Make sure you stick to the person beside you and don't lose focus of the mission. We are here to save a life, not to lose any." As he finished he blasted away another enemy who had tried to sneak up on the student who pushed him into the mud. The students suddenly burst into cheers and applause before beginning to shift themselves into more organised formations. They listened as Ludo yelled instructions down keeping all of them safe. When the enemy had sent their own mages to attack he changed it to defensive, when they took down the mages and the normal people tried to attack they went offensive. They formed pairs like he suggested and one would rest while the other fought. Ludo kept the stragglers from breaking through and kept sending up light flares to illuminate the battlefield. He was doing great leading the students when a cross bow on top of the ruins fired at him. He managed to mostly dodge it but damaged his wing. The pain broke his spell and he began to fall to the earth. He braced himself for impact when he landed gently in the arms of one of the students who had ridiculed him.

"Are you okay Prince Ludo?.. **MEDIC?"** The student called out and another rushed forward and began to heal him.

"Prince Ludo? What are your instructions?" Ludo looked up to see all the students looking at him for instruction. Gone was the contempt and resent and instead was respect and willingness to follow. He picked himself back up and floated into the sky.

"Focus the damage on the ruins to the weapons, the others will struggle if they are up and running then begin to focus on the lower parts of the wall. If we bring it down we expose them to our barrage and we can deal more damage. Close range unit I want you to focus all your magic on turning the field in front of us into a trap. With all this water and mud a little magic will turn it into a dangerous situation for our enemy allowing us to take them out better. Miss Janna asked us to come as she believed in us. We few who are blessed with magic have come together to learn to control it in order to save lives and right the wrongs of the world. In the past I made a lot of mistakes and i have to live with those however losing Karate Boy.. Losing Marco to these everyday villains after all the times he kicked my butt is a no no. I need all of you to give your best and prove that an Index Of Knowledge is a school that can raise us to new heights. Let's show them what we are made off!" Ludo shot his magic into the air while yelling out a battle cry. From the depths of his heart he thought of the trust and faith both Star and Janna had entrusted him with. It was his job to protect these students and prove to everyone that Ludo Avarius, Prince of the Avarius Line was a somebody for the first time in his life. Every student followed suit causing the sky to fill with multi coloured streams of magic as they all turned back to the fight that they couldn't afford to lose.

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The rescue party inside could feel the vibrations throughout the ruined castle from the barrage outside.

"Jeez Janna what have you been teaching them?" Kelly asked as some rubble fell from the ceiling.

"I have been teaching them how to protect themselves.. And to be badass!" Laughed Janna.

"She is selling herself short.. She makes us all personal lesson plans to ensure we can keep up with her classes. Lets us learn the magic we want to in our lessons while not losing the pace of the curriculum. Every student in the school loves her and would literally go fight a war for her." Jade looked up to see Heckapoo, Kelly and Higgs starring at him surprised. Janna pulled her hat down to hide her blushing cheeks.

"What?"

"Just.. No one usually talks about her like that?" Heckapoo answered.

"Why?"

"Well.. It's Janna? Scary weird girl who will find out all your dark secrets and blackmail you with them?" Kelly replied this time.

"I can hear you?" Janna pitched in. They all turned round a corner heading to the lower parts of the ruins hoping to find him in the dungeon.

"Oh I mean she is all those things you've said but so much more" Jade smiled looking past the other girls straight at Janna. The girls all looked at each other and smirked. Finally they had found Janna's very own weakness as she continued trying to hide her face from them. All of a sudden a group of armed people came round the corner in front of him. Jade leapt forward and fired ice crystals straight into each of them that exploded sealing them in ice. He quickly followed up with a whip of lightning that shattered them into many pieces. Everyone looked up at him shocked.

"Oh... were we not meant to kill?" He asked confused. Jade had been talented at all kinds of magic when he first joined the school. Janna had decided to keep him training particularly on offensive elemental magic after realising he had absolutely no talent in defensive spells. It wasn't that he was bad at them, he was generally good with all magic, just he had a habit of going all offence. A habit Janna endorsed.

"Nope. That was good. Good boy" Janna chuckled as they headed down a set of stairs heading for the dungeon. Knowing that they were getting closer the group moved quietly before arriving at the dungeons. Kelly rushed forward and using her strength she tore the bars off the wall. They looked inside only to find it empty. Kelly walked forward and picked up the torn remains of Marco's hoodie.

"Where is he?"

"He said that they make him fight in a large room.. Maybe he was there when we attacked?" Higgs suggested.

They all paused to think of where to go when Jade's phone began to ring blasting out space unicorn. Everyone looked at him again.

"What? It's supposed to be ironic?"

"Hello?"

 _"Up the stairs, to the right follow it down and then take the third left. Hurry."_ Jade could tell how urgent it was from Dox's voice.

"Got it." Jade turned to the others.

"Up the stairs, to the right, follow it down and then take the third left. That's where we'll find Marco."

"Who do you keep talking to on the phone?" Janna asked giving into her curiosity. The whole time they had known each other he had regular calls with someone and it intrigued her to find out who it was.

"It's a secret but anyway we need to go now" Jade smirked back. Kelly pushed past them both and started to run towards Marco with the others following suit. She punched any person who tried to get in her way shattering their cheek bones and jaws before they even knew what hit them. Jade trailed behind dealing with any stragglers and reinforcements letting the girls go off ahead.

Coming to the third left the girls saw a hall full of guards stopping them from getting to the door they wanted to get to.

"Eight, so two each. That's the plan take out two." Janna suggested. They all agreed on their targets and set to work. Higgs tied her boot dagger to a rope and threw it into the neck of the first guard pulling it back before swinging it into the head of the next closest. Janna began to channel magic and rushed forward. She pushed her palm to the two guards on the right front of the hallway and released her magic. The two people froze as their skin began to crack and they turned to dust. The other four guards began to head to the door for reinforcements when a red and a black portal opened cutting off their escape. Heckapoo dived out bringing her daggers down into the chest of one guards and using her other portal to cause the other guard to fall from the room to outside into the stormy sea. Kelly rushed forward and punched one of the guards in the throat breaking his airway. He fell to the floor choking when she kicked him in the skull ending his life. The last guard tried to fight back and swung her sword at Kelly who immediately disarmed her and drove her sword back into her pinning her to the wall. The whole fiasco was over in under a minute.

"Let's go" Heckapoo said opening the door. They were all blinded by the lights and when their eyes adjusted to it they realised they were in a small booth looking down into the room below. Rushing forward they could see plenty of people in nearby booths all watching the ground while wearing masks. The foursome looked down to the scene below and gasped in horror.

Blood covered every part of the room below with broken bodies littering the floor. They watched as a familiar face gritted his teeth as he pushed the sword away that was nearing his throat away. He jumped up kicking his attacker away. One tried to take him from his blind side but he slipped on the blood under foot and managed to dodge. Realising he almost got killed he picked up the remains of a broken spear and used it as a shank to stab the attacker in the throat. He then pushed against the nearest body to avoid the swing from the first guy's sword. Marco wiped the blood from his eye and tried to focus. After letting Higgs get away he was beaten and was now concussed. His remaining vision was blurry and his balance was failing him. He could no longer use his right arm and he was losing blood fast. He had managed to kill everyone else in this round and wasn't about to lose his life yet. He ripped a piece of clothe off one of the dead and used it to tie the shank to his hand. His opponent knew he was injured so wouldn't suspect an attack from that side. He picked up a stray shield with his left hand and began to circle the fight area never letting the opponent leave his eye. His opponent rushed forward and forced him to block. Marco whipped his body sideways forcing the shank into the opponents cheek. Unfortunately it wasn't a kill hit. The opponent pulled the shank and threw it to the side. He ran at Marco again forcing him to defend himself. Marco knew his options were limited so was going to risk his good leg on a desperate move. He drew his opponent in and when he was close enough Marco used the shield to stagger his enemy and jumped high. He used the weight of the shield to shift his centre of gravity as he span and kicked the man in the back of the neck. The force of his kick was so great you could hear the snap of the man's spinal cord up through all the seats. Marco fell to the ground and used the wall to pull himself back up when boos and jeers filled the room.

 _ **"Once again the Child of Fate survives.. How much longer will he be able to keep his life? We will see! Bring in the next wave!"**_

Marco looked up, his vision now failing him completely, managed to see the outline of around ten people enter the room. He raised his working arm into stance and prepared himself. He was as ready as he was going to be.

 **"STOP!"** A voice from above rang out. Marco looked in front of him as a swirling light let four individuals appear in front of him. Thinking this was another attempt at his life he tried to hit the closest one to him but the person caught his fist easily and pulled him into an embrace. He could hear her gentle sobbing and knew from her touch, her sound and her scent who it was.

"Oh Marco... What have they done to you.." Kelly sobbed as she stroked his head. He saw another silhouette approach him and take seat beside him.

"Oi safe kid! Why do I always have to rescue your butt!?" Marco recognised the voice and smiled. His childhood friend had come to save him. He smiled at her comment which only caused the girls to feel worse. He looked at the other two silhouettes and could tell one was Higgs and the other was unmistakeably Heckapoo. These four ladies had come to his aid. He knew they were still in for a big fight ahead but he couldn't stop himself from crying with joy. He had managed to do it.. To hold on long enough. He was lost in that moment when Janna tapped his forehead putting him to sleep. She turned to Kelly.

"I'll start healing him but I'll need you to keep them all distracted. I won't be able to do much else when the healing incantation starts." Janna bit down onto her finger causing it to bleed and began to draw symbols on Marco's body.

"Got it. Don't worry.. I will make them pay for hurting my Marco." Kelly stood up and cracked her knuckles. Walking to the other girls they faced off against their enemies.

"You heard her ladies, we need to take care of the trash." In response to her words the ten opponents drew their weapons, ready to fight.

 _ **"It looks like our main attraction will have to wait, the daughters of Fate have come to entertain us with their deaths. Warriors, you kill a daughter of fate and you shall have all the riches you can dream off, however if you kill the Son of Fate you will gain something the riches could never buy you.. Let the fight begin!"**_ Rang out an announcers voice.

Six of the ten opponents quickly rushed forward eager to get the glory. This was their mistake. Two sword wielders rushed towards Kelly, hoping the green haired girl would be easier to take on than the Knight and Demi-God. This illusion was quickly shattered as Kelly grabbed both their swords and crushed them into pieces. She grabbed the nearest one and smashed their head against the wall. The other tried to back away but walked straight to a portal she had made and they fell from the top of the room straight onto the floor in front of her. She grabbed the remains of their swords and brought it down onto him ending his life.

Two had gone after Higgs remembering her from the Inn. She recognized them so put her boot dagger away. She pulled out a pair of knuckle dusters Marco had given her and when the quicker assailant drew near she cracked him on the nose breaking it. He cupped his nose in agony as the other person leapt over him to reach Higgs. He swung his mace at her but she easily dodged him. She couldn't believe he thought that he could hit her with the mace but she dropped her guard and the man with the broken nose grabbed her from behind. The mace wielding idiot rushed forward to beat her so she brought her head back into the nose guys nose causing him to let go and scream in pain. She dodged at the last second which led to mace guy knocking out nose guy. Before mace guy could move again she quickly grabbed his hair and beat his face until he went limp and fell to the floor.

Heckapoo's two opponents were a little more cautious. They both held spears and circled around her. Heckapoo opened a portal and tried to rush through it when both of her enemies thrust their spears forward stabbing her from both sides. They cheered for a second when both were stabbed from behind. They watched as the Heckapoo they stabbed turned into smoke and another one of her stood behind both of them. She pulled out her dagger and kicked them to the ground before merging back together. All three girls turned to see the other four people. The whole time, as their team mates were slaughtered, they had done nothing but watch. They studied the girls movements before picking an opponent each. One person stepped forward and quickly opened a portal he went to jump through it when Heckapoo moved to stop him. This was what he wanted as he grabbed her and pulled her through with him disappearing from sight.

Two of the remaining opponents were both women who seemed to have no weapon. They rushed towards Kelly and she tried to hit them but they easily dodged her swings and punched her with quick light jabs. She didn't really feel any pain from it so carried on trying to fight while they kept jabbing her. She didn't realize what they were doing until one hit her right upper arm and she felt it go limp. She suddenly understood. They were like Marco, practicing in a martial art but this one was about disabling an opponent. From their observation they deemed her strength to be a threat and tried to neutralize that. She laughed darkly before jumping up, vanishing through a portal and reappearing through another kicking one of the girls from behind.

Higgs dodged the thrust from the last opponent. Like the two Heckapoo had fought this guy used a spear. She dodged his attacks easily but could not make any ground on him. She kicked one of the spears up and used it as a staff to deflect his attacks.

Outside Heckapoo and her opponent crashed into the muddy ground. She stood up and locked eyes on him through the rain. The flashes of magic from the students illuminated the ground between them showing the fallen bodies of the ruins guard. Heckapoo ran across the bodies to gain speed and drop kicked the man across the field. He remained standing as he slid backwards. He ran forwards to her sliding down and taking her legs out. He crawled on top and brought a knife down to her head but she dodged it by moving her head. She head butted him and forced him back. She knew she had to get back inside and tried to think of how to beat him. The attacker on the other hand grabbed a sword from the ground and tried to strike her down. She blocked his swings with her daggers feeling her whole arms go numb from the force. She watched as more lights flew by them towards the castle. She quickly leapt back and let him rush towards her. She cut a portal directly beneath his feet forcing him to fall from the sky. Heckapoo watched as he fell straight into the students crossfire and lit up like a load of fireworks. She began to run back to the castle as fast as she could.

Kelly dodged the girls as they carried on trying to paralyse parts of her body. She had been doing well but had slipped on the blood allowing them to get her other arm. Realising that she now couldn't use her arms she had to try a new method. She summoned a circle of portals and jumped through one. Appearing at the top of the room she fell down gathering speed into another portal which fired her out at the left girl. She wrapped her legs around her neck and span around snapping it. She then jumped into another portal and jumped between them as the surviving enemy tried to predict her moves. Unfortunately for her she never noticed the portal that appeared beneath her feet throwing her into the air and straight into Kelly's foot which she brought down as they smashed into the ground. The girl was left unconscious and barely breathing.

Higgs' opponent was faring no better than his peers. He tried to injure her with the spear but she blocked every attack and kept him pinned with her own attacks. He watched as his fellows fell to the green haired one and figured his other team member probably met a similar fate. Realising his fate was sealed he let Higgs stab him in his left shoulder using his hand to keep it there and then threw his spear straight at Marco. Kelly and Higgs rushed to stop it but they weren't quick enough but Janna moved swiftly using her body to block it. The spear went straight through her chest and pinned her to the wall. Higgs quickly killed the man who threw it before rushing to her side.

"Janna.. Janna speak to me?" She cried out as Janna looked down at the spear that was inside her. Blood began to leak from her mouth as she looked up at the other two. She could see the fear in their eyes. She had tried to put up a simple shield spell that would have prevented this whole incident but in the second it happened she realized she had forgotten it. Heckapoo had warned her that it would be the death of her and now it seemed she was right. Janna reached up to pull the spear out but Kelly stopped her.

"Janna don't that could be stopping you from bleeding out. We need to go get a medic or something. Higgs do you know any healing magic?" Kelly asked, desperately trying to remain calm.

"No.. No.. You need an aptitude to learn that and I didn't have it." Higgs was shaking unsure of what to do.

"Then go find a medic.. **NOW!** " Kelly yelled snapping Higgs out of shock. She rushed to the exit and began to try to find the exit.

"So just you and me now.." Janna managed to say while coughing out blood.

"Don't speak.. It could make it worse.. Don't worry we'll get help.. They will heal you.." Kelly told herself more than to Janna.

"Help won't be enough.. They're my students and none of them are at this level yet.. Only person who can heal stuff like this is currently out of it on the floor resting.." Kelly felt her blood run cold as she looked down at Marco. Janna had managed to heal a lot of his injuries but he still looked like he needed a years worth of sleep to get over it.

"Well.. Heckapoo can take you back.. To the castle.. Or to Star.. She can do something.."

"No good.. Matchstick's way of getting us here in the storm was a one way deal. It only worked because all the dimension magic students stayed behind to stabilise Heckapoo's stealth ebony portal. She had to leave those scissor behind and the students are probably unconscious with the amount of magic it used. You gotta hand it to Matchstick and, her lover boy, Dox, they must of made a hell of a team. To create a whole new method of dimension travel that could instantly teleport large groups of people using four trained people. Heckapoo was working on it with the science division to be used as an evacuation method for the kingdom.. Fancy that.." Janna laughed which only caused her to lose more blood.

"You need to stop talking." Kelly sobbed as tears flowed down her face. She closed her eyes as she tried to think of a way to save Janna when she felt her soft hand wipe her tears away.

"No tears now.. Save it for my funeral.. I expect to have some great eulogies so keep them for then.."

"Don't say that.."

"Thank you Kelly.. For looking after Marco.."

"Stop.."

"I was always worried about him you know.. He was like my little brother and I was always worried no one would ever see him for how beautiful of a person he really is.."

"Janna stop.."

"I'm glad he met you.. I'm glad I met you. I got to be a teacher.. I fell in love you know.. With a student, can you believe it! What a scandal.."

"Please just stop.. Wait until help comes.. You can tell me this when your better.." Kelly begged.

"…"

"Janna.."

"…"

"Janna!" Kelly moved closer realizing she had stopped responding. She tried to feel for a pulse but it was too late. She was gone. Kelly's tears turned into screams as her legs gave way beneath her.

"What's going on?" Kelly turned to see Jade pop his head round the corner. He walked into the room distracted by all the blood before locking eyes on Janna. He rushed forward and tore the spear from her body laying her on the ground.

" **WHAT HAPPENED!** " He yelled as he searched for a pulse.

"I.. I.."

" **Ms. Kelly!** "

"We had to fight.. One person had a spear.. Aimed at Marco and Janna got in the way.. We didn't know healing magic so Higgs went for help." Kelly couldn't take her eyes off Janna. Jade began to perform CPR on her trying to bring her back. The only sounds that could be heard in the room was his panting and breathing as he carried on. Higgs ran back to the room with one of the students who rushed forward and began to cast a spell followed quickly by Heckapoo who found herself walking back into the wall and dropping to the floor. She began to mumble to herself _"No.. No.. This cannot be happening.. No.."._

Minutes passed and nothing changed with the silence not breaking. The student eventually stopped casting her magic when Jade grabbed her by her collar.

"Why are you stopping?" His voice was hollow.

"I'm sorry.. But there's nothing I can do.. I can't revive the dead.. No one can.."

"Keep going."

"But I-"

" **-KEEP GOING!** " Jade yelled at the student who began to cry. He felt a hand on his and looked up to see Higgs. Tears flowed from her eyes as she shook her head.

"No.. No.. It doesn't end like this.. Not her.." Jade told himself. He looked up to the sky.

"My Goddess! I know you can hear me! I have never asked you for anything. I have obeyed you and followed you faithfully my Lady. But I want you to save her. I need you to save her!" He screamed as loud as he could to the sky. The others all stared at him as he waited for some response or signal.

Nothing came.

"My Goddess Please! Answer the cries of thy disciple and please spare her life!" Jade screamed again. Silence fell again with nothing coming in response. With his last hope now gone he dropped to his knee and began to stroke her hair as he broke down crying.

 _"Space unicorn_  
 _Soaring through the stars_  
 _Delivering the rainbows all around the world_

 _Space unicorn_  
 _Shining in the night_  
 _Smiles and hugs forever_  
 _All around the world_

 _So pure of heart_  
 _And strong of mind_  
 _So true of aim with his marshmallow laser_  
 _Marshmallow laser_

 _Space unicorn_  
 _Soaring through the stars_  
 _Delivering the rainbows all around the world_

 _Delivering the rainbows_  
 _Delivering the rainbows_  
 _Delivering the rainbows all around the world_  
 _Delivering the rainbows all around the world_

 _All around the world  
_ _All around the world  
_ _All around the world  
_ _All around the world"_

The whole song 🎶 rang out as no one reacted to Jade's phone. The music stopped for a moment before it started again. He reached down and answered his phone.

 ** _"I can help you save her."_**

 **A/N: And there ends another chapter :3 I hope you all enjoy and if you have any thoughts or questions feel free to PM or leave a review. I'll always try to reply when I can :)**

 **To clarify a few points I was asked to:-**

 **\- Heckapoo's special power - The four corner teleport spell uses the scissors that Heckapoo and Dox invented but uses the power and wills of four magic beings to move large groups of people across dimensions. It can be used even in magic storms as it drains the magic of the spell casters and is** **stabilised** **by their link to it.**

 **\- Like Dox specialised in Illusion Magic and Knowledge (which included Martial arts and weapons) Jade too has a focus. He makes up for what Dox lacked and is incredibly talented at magic however he tends to prefer offensive magic and because of this he rarely uses defensive magic and can't use healing magic. He would be able to if he tried but it's not his preference. Whereas Dox was willing to learn anything but couldn't Jade doesn't want to learn everything even though he could.**

 **Anyway :) hope you enjoyed the chapter even though it got pretty dark and look forward to posting the next chapter soon.**


	6. The Cost Of Love

**Keeping Your Promise#6**

 **The Cost Of Love**

* * *

 **A/N: Massive apologises for the delay on this chapter, had a lot going on at home and just honestly forgot to publish it. I hope you all enjoy reading and hope you like the chapter :)  
**

 **Kerbolious: Hopefully this will make you feel better but sadly the tone won't recover that easily :) Thank you for your Ludo comments I enjoyed writing his character as its such a good one to write now he's trying to change and the wings was just poor writing on my part, sorry to say, I've tried to explain them in here but thank you for pointing it out. Sadly it isn't a reference to that but I watched a bit and dang it was good to watch :) and no sorry I don't recall ever** **receiving** **any PM, please send it again and I'll try to reply to it to the best of my ability.**

 **Damunyo: It had to happen really :) sadly it's as you probably guessed.**

 **Lerans: I may have to disappoint at this moment but a teaser for things to come is that Dox won't remain alone on the other side and that it won't be getting easier before it gets harder. and thank you for your support :)**

 **LucklessBlock86: Thank you :) Honestly left me with a lump in my throat as I tried to write it. I found it hard to convey the emotion with her death. Like.. I know what I wanted to feel and what I wanted everyone to feel particularly as Janna is the cute, jokey but loyal and hardworking type who knows when she is needed and had just found love with someone who spent his whole life living like a shell and for that moment of their love blossoming to be threatened like this is hard :) Hope you continue to enjoy the story.**

* * *

 **/**

A few minutes earlier…

Dox paced around the room frantically. He watched the students carry on their assault of the ruins, how they barraged it with their magic and eventually had taken out the weapons on top. A group of men and woman wearing masks tried to escape but were captured by the students left deployment. Someone would answer for what happened to Marco.

He changed the channel and watched as Jade fought all the reinforcements that were called to stop the girls. He was impressed with the younger boy while also being slightly jealous. He was blessed with amazing magical power and talent and it showed. He made it look easy to take out the waves of guards and warriors alike. The number of people he had taken down was reaching mid double figures but he looked no less tired for it. Dox wouldn't have been able to do half of that without tricks and deception. His illusion magic was his strength and he perfected it. Jade seemed like his true strength was being a one man army however Dox could see he needed someone to fight beside him and watch his back as he was too confident in his power. Glossaryck had always told him never to be too proud of your own power as it leads to underestimating others and he was worried the boy would do the same.

Dox watched as the girls began to fight the guards and entered the theater dungeon. He saw Marco all beaten and broke.. Making him want to cry. He reached into his pocket and grabbed the Vial of Life that Fate had left him and took the cap off. He wouldn't leave them to fight alone anymore. He slowly lifted it to his lips. He felt the weight shift as the liquid drew closer to his mouth and just as he felt the first drop about to drop he heard an all too familiar noise.

 _Knock Knock_

Dox quickly put the cap back on, pocketed the vial and ran to the door. He had been expecting to see Fate and get some more answers but when he opened the door he found himself speechless.

Standing before him was what he could only describe as the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She had long flowing blue hair that rested atop one of her shoulders. Her piercing blue eyes met his and it was like he was being pulled into them. Her long eyelashes fluttered breaking the spell. Her lips had a light blue tint to them against her pale white skin. Almost as if she had no life in her and was preserved forever. Two small straps held her long slim dress that decorated her body. Dox found himself admiring all her curves and her body. He almost couldn't believe that someone so beautiful could exist. Her presence reminded him of the clearest blue sky or an eye catching white winter. A force of nature that could not be ignored. He would probably have remained staring at her if she hadn't spoke.

 _"Greetings Disciple of Fate, I apologise for troubling you however I wish to discuss something with you. My name is Lady, the Goddess of Love."_

Dox didn't even speak but ushered the woman inside. Once in the living room he offered her a seat and a drink which she politely accepted. He carried on staring at her until she spoke again.

 _"Is something the matter?"_ She raised her eyebrow and once again locked eyes with him.

"Sorry.. You.. You are so mesmerizing and beautiful I can hardly think of anything" Dox wasn't even aware of speaking before he heard himself and held his mouth shut. Lady smiled while blushing filling her pale white cheeks with red which only made her look cuter.

 _"Thank you.. Your compliments are greatly appreciated although I'm sure I can hardly compare to your own Goddess. I often find myself telling my Disciple to be more honest as he says no one could compare to me.."_ Dox thought it might be more Goddess humour after his interactions with Fate but after seeing her reaction he realised what he was currently sitting opposite… A Goddess with low self esteem and confidence issues.

"No I can honestly say Fate does not even begin to compare to you, personality included, and I'm sure that Jade doesn't just say that to humour you but because you are truly beautiful!" Dox watched as she blushed happily before frowning and looking sad.

 _"Thank you again.. However I cannot agree, he only feels like that because he is yet to find Love.. Like you.. You do find me attractive I can feel it but in your heart I could never be more than a runner up.. I sense these things you see Disciple.. What is your name by the way?"_

"Sorry.. I guess it's because I already have someone I love.. And my given name from my father is Index of Knowledge but everyone just calls me Dox.. It's a long story.."

 _"Never apologise for loving another, that is where true beauty lies. Tell me a bit about her Dox."_

"..Okay.. Her name is Heckapoo, she is a Demi-God from the mortal realm.. Although I'm not really sure where that stands with all you Gods and Goddesses about. When I first met her I thought she was rude, selfish and annoying. She kept trying to impose her way of life and rules on me.. I tried to humour her for a while and soon we became friends.. And then lovers and then we were going to become more but life didn't allow it. In the end I found her to be the most beautiful and most alluring woman I have ever seen. She was wilful, strong, caring, loyal and above all she was unstoppable. I mean she even stabbed me once, can you believe that? Being honest I miss her.." Dox looked up to see Lady with her head in her hands listen attentively.

 _"If you miss her so dearly why haven't you drunk that elixir in your pocket?"_ Lady questioned.

"I.. My time by her side has ended and my role is to be here now. If I went back for something as selfish as being with her she wouldn't forgive me for leaving her in the first place.."

 _"Thank you for telling me your tale of love. It is always pleasing to hear stories of true and special love."_

"It's okay.. It was nice to talk about really.. So thank you.. By the way what did you want to talk about?" Dox asked. Lady waved her hand and appeared on the table was a small circular blue crystal covered in cracks and a fading light inside. Dox picked it up and looked at it, it was like nothing he had ever felt before. It was so warm and soothing.

"What is it?"

 _"It is the devotion I receive from my disciple, Jade as you've named him."_

"Why is it all broken?"

 _"Because his devotion is about to end and the love he once only sought to give me he will finally give another. Today is the day he stops being mine and becomes.. Hers.."_ Lady admitted smiling widely. She ran her fingers across the cracks and smiled passionately.

"Forgive me if I speak out of turn.. But you don't seen that bothered by it? And who is 'her'?" Lady just laughed at his question.

 _"I see why Fate likes you, you really are perceptive and interesting. I am not bothered by it I am happy for him. I found him as a baby shielded by the love of his parents and raised him. I was worried the love and devotion of their sacrifice would be wasted away with me when you appeared before us both, changing the world as we knew it. He seemed drawn to you and your friends. I could finally feel longing inside him so I ordered him to help you. The fact he has finally found love is the greatest gift that I as his surrogate mother could ever receive. I am the Goddess of Love, this is the most important love story I will ever witness."_ She carried on smiling at the crystal. Dox noticed the cracks were spreading further and further.

"Alrighty then.. But who is she then?"

 _"Her"_ Lady pointed to the TV behind them. Dox turned around to see a spear go flying into Janna and pin her to the wall. He froze as he watched Kelly begging her to stop talking and to wait for help. He almost stopped breathing when he heard the crying sound get louder. Jade walked into the room and began to try to help her.

"Can you save her?" Dox asked never taking his eyes from the TV.

 _"Yes"_

"Will you..?"

 _"No.. It is not my place to spare the lives of mortals and I know that it will all be okay anyway"_ They watched as Jade screamed out to the heavens, begging for his Lady's aid. Lady stood up and walked to the door. She turned back and watched as the cracks on the crystal grew bigger causing it to fracture and break before finally turning to dust and disappearing, showing her devoted son was no more. She had betrayed his loyalty.

"How will it?"

 _"Because they have you my sweet Dox, You know what you need to do and I'm sorry that it has to be you. I hope we meet again under nicer circumstances, farewell."_ Dox heard the door close and knew that he was alone in the house again. He watched Jade drop to his knees and begin to sob. Dox quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone and the vial. He quickly dialed Jade's number and heard it go through to voice mail.

"PICK UP YOU MORON!" He yelled at the phone before calling again. He heard the beep as Jade answered but heard no one speaking so decided to get to the point.

"I can help you save her" He confessed down the phone. He watched on the screen as Jade dropped his phone in shock and face palmed. Once Jade had picked it back up Dox continued.

"I can help you save Janna, Jade."

"How?" His voice cracked from behind his tears. "You can't save the dead.. No one can.."

"True.. But what would you say if by some miracle my Goddess, The Goddess of Fate had left me an Elixir that would bring me back to life and I hadn't drunk it yet.."

"That you are an idiot and that you may be the greatest person to ever have lived! You can save her!? Please tell me this isn't some sick joke!" Dox watched him clench his fist as if preparing himself to be told it was all a lie. It was this moment that showed Dox just how lost Jade had become losing both Janna and the trust he had in his Goddess. He wondered if Heckapoo ever felt like that when he had died. Like had she ever just shut down.. He shook off the thought and replied to the desperate boy.

"Thank you and no this is no joke. You know I can pass things through the TV well I'm going to try to pass this through the TV and I need you to catch it. Then make her drink the contents."

"How will I do that?"

"You'll find a way.. Now get ready.."

"Wait.. This is your last chance.. Isn't it.. To come back?"

"Does that really matter to you?" Jade looked down at Janna and pushed the hair from her face. He ran his hand along her cheek and smiled tenderly. To him in that moment nothing more mattered than Janna's life.

"Sorry.. But no not to me.."

"Good, get ready!"

The whole time Jade had been on the phone the others had all been staring at him confused. They heard him get excited and happy from whatever news he had heard and when he had said the words "You can save her!?" All of them had shot up and moved closer to hear better. Kelly thought she recognized the voice coming through the other side but wasn't sure where from.

Jade stood up while still listening to instructions from the voice before raising one hand to an odd angle in the air with his palm open. Before anyone could ask what he was doing a small spark appeared and a square screen appeared from nowhere. A small vial dropped from a hand on the screen before pulling back to reveal a red haired person. Everyone apart from Higgs and Jade froze staring at where the image vanished. Jade rushed to Janna's side and uncapped the vial. He tried to pour it into her mouth but it just dribbled out across her cheek. He quickly drank from the vial. He pushed his lip to Janna's forcing the liquid down her throat. He didn't let up as he forced every single drop into her.

Nothing seemed to happen so Jade carried on pushing the liquid into her. Every part of him wishing her to come back to him.

Although he couldn't see, the wound on her chest began to repair itself until it was non-existent and her body began to glow. Suddenly Jade felt her hands run through his hair and she started to kiss him back. He didn't move as the two carried on kissing passionately. He could feel the warmth returning to her body and lips and tears poured from his eyes as he held her tighter in an embrace until they inevitably pulled apart. He looked down to see her smiling at him.

"So it only took dying for you to kiss me huh?" She said with her usual jokey demeanor. He moved his hand to brush her hair away and cup her cheek. Before quickly flicking her in the head and standing up.

"Oh don't be like that…"

"Like what!? You died! And the first thing you do is joke about it!" He yelled at her. She went to stand to stop him from leaving when he grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms. She blushed before looking into his bright blue eyes.

"I lost you Janna.. It wasn't almost.. It was lost. You died. What am I meant to do if you die.. I fell in love with you.." Jade began to let his tears fall again when she kissed the tear on his cheek and then on the other side and every tear in between until he stopped.

"I'm sorry.. But I'm okay now.. Wait.. How am I even alive?"

"We'd like to know that too!" Jade and Janna looked up to see teary eyed Higgs, Kelly, Heckapoo and an embarrassed looking student staring at them. Jade suddenly gulped realizing he had completely blown all cover.

"It's a miracle?" He said nervously chuckling when Kelly reached forward and punched him in the face.

"Ouch! What the hell Ms. Kelly?" He looked up to see Kelly apologize to Janna only for her to say it was deserved. He found himself get surrounded by the four girls.

"When that little box opened and revealed your little supporter we got a good look at his face. It was Dox A. Par." Heckapoo said staring at him.

"Well.. Not really.."

"Oh really? So you just happen to know his twin brother?" Kelly asked sarcastically.

"Well.. No.. His name is Index.. But yeah.." Jade looked at the door and started thinking of what the odds of him escaping from them was.

"Vu Jade Agape.. Now I think about it no one else could have come up with such a dumb name.. I get it.. Dejá Vu and Agape. French for to see again and backwards means not seen before. Agape is greek for innocent Love. So your name is Love not seen before." Janna knelt down next to him and smiled at him. He felt his blood run cold and cold sweats appear over his body as the look and smile she gave him left him more terrified than he ever felt before.

"Okay okay.. I'll tell you everything but can we do it later and not now in this bloody room!" He raised his arms prepared for another hit when he heard all of them agree.

"Okay but you better not try to lie pretty boy!" Janna chuckled before pulling him up.

* * *

/

Jade found himself being tied up and left in a store room while everyone else dealt with the aftermath. The girls met up with Ludo and the students who had subdued all the enemies and had captured all of the masked audience. Janna was honestly surprised by how well they had done considering none of them had liked Ludo to begin with. He was just the one who was closest when she assigned the leader.

He bounced around cheerfully showing off his wings. He hadn't realised during the fight that him flying and fighting with everything he had sparked something inside him and he had grown his arm wings much like his younger brother. He still couldn't use them to fly but he didn't care. He was a bundle of delight as the students celebrated with him and decided to try seeing if this place had a kitchen while they waited out the storm.

Kelly had taken Marco and along with Higgs the two found the medical students and got them to work on healing him not wanting Janna to strain herself after her death experience. The medics told them that they would be able to cure every part of him except for his eye. They weren't sure why but no matter what they tried their magic wasn't advanced enough to cure the wound so he'd be left, for now, blind in one eye and having a scar over his eye. They decided to take him, the other injured students and the tied up prisoners into the Parahouse. Heckapoo had told them they'd be able to access it but the long range transport it used was too similar to her own and wouldn't work in the storm. After Higgs had decided to try to find the device that was blocking her mirror phone so she could report into Star.

Janna lifted her top and ran her fingers gently against the place that was moments before a gaping hole. She wasn't sure what Jade was going to tell her but she was afraid that her resurrection had more consequences than she knew about.

"You should be careful, some of the other boys in your class have a crush on you too." Janna looked up to see Heckapoo standing in the doorway. She realised it had come to an end with the ignoring and was ready for the lecture.

"All that means is momma's got some honey.. You here to moan at me matchstick?"

"Moan at you!? I want to shake you and if i hadn't just seen you dead I'd go as far to say I'd kill you myself! You ignore me for weeks and the first time we see each other you die!?" Heckapoo sighed deeply before taking a seat next to her.

"Can't you see I just want to help you.. Your memory is getting worse.. I know full well you could have put a shield up in time regardless of what the situation.. Unless you couldn't remember the spell anymore.. It was one you learnt during your trial.. You're not just losing your memories from our adventure you're losing the others too Janna.. It's going to get worse until one day you are going to be nothing more than a blank slate.." Tears began to fall down her cheek as Janna felt guilt fill her.

"I'm sorry.. I just wanted to focus on our future.. I mean.. The reason I suggested the six months is because at the rate this is going Ill be blank in less than a year.. It's not like with Marco.. It isn't a physical problem.. I just want to make the most of all the memories I have left." Janna admitted.

"Less than a year? How do you know that?"

"Bluebell in the cupboard over there worked it out.. I gave him an exam with a case study and used myself as the example. He did the research and analysis. Best case scenario was a little over a year and worst was six months. I had my suspicions but he confirmed it. He doesn't know it was about me though."

"We need to tell the others.. They may be able to help you.."

"No. This is my life and my choice. I will not become a burden to the people I love. I will keep trying to stop it or slow it but I won't be the one to stop everyone reaching their goals."

"Janna.. What if something like today happens again?"

"It won't."

"How can you know that?"

"Because I won't let it." Suddenly there was a knock on the door and Kelly walked in. It was time to talk to the Disciple of Love.

Jade's eyes took a little while to adjust to the light outside of the cupboard but when they did all he saw was three very angry woman.

"You know I won't try to run you don't have to leave me tied up?" Jade said hoping they'd release the restraints.

"Of course we know i just like seeing you tied up" Janna smiled at him.

"And that's exactly what we were talking about earlier!" Kelly pitched in.

"Anyway.. Who are you?" Heckapoo quizzed. Jade sighed and tried to think of how best to explain it.

"Last chance but you wouldn't happen to just ignore it all and not make this difficult?" Jade pleaded. Looking up he realised it wasn't really an option.

"Okay.. Vu Jade Agape is the only name I've ever had, yes I did receive it recently. When I was a baby my parents and I were in an accident that cost them their lives. They sacrificed themselves to protect me and save my life. Seeing their love and devotion I was saved by the Goddess Of Love. Like the Goddess who rules over Fate and the Blood Moon Ball she raised me as her Disciple to carry out her will. Although truthfully I never did anything. I lived a life of nothingness, not ageing and never growing due to her blessing. One day she was excited as there was something happening in the mortal world. We watched the Disciple of Fate as he led you, Ms. Kelly, and your partner Marco to change fate itself and do so with Love at your side. Seeing all of you moved me and when Fate approached my Goddess about what had happened and that there was someone interferring in the mortal world I was instructed to come to Mewni and aid you all."

"Okay.. So your some religious dude who watched us and now wants to help us?" Kelly asked confused.

"Oversimplifying it.. But yes.."

"Then how did you meet Dox? Is he still alive?" She asked hopefully.

"I'm sorry to say but he isn't with the living. I met him in the after life. He has been given an area to wait out his time as you all live your lives. Something about a promise to Marco to wait and hear about all his adventures. He was promoted from Jester of the Blood Moon to Guardian Of The Blood Moon. He is able to watch over you all and sometimes interact. I believe he left a note for one of you and has intervened a few more times. The times he can interact are limited."

"So.. He's really been watching over us..?" Heckapoo asked.

"Yes" Heckapoo and Kelly both smiled wide realizing that the feeling they had of someone looking out for them was true. Janna on the other hand frowned.

"Why does he have his own area?"

"As a reward for fulfilling his duty as Jester he was rewarded by his Goddess.. She was reluctant but offered him anything he desired. He chose to keep his promise as at the time you were all just over coming your grief and if he returned he would have made those feelings and hurdles you overcame useless.."

"Okay.. So why did he had a potion that could bring back the dead.."

"Apparently it was gifted to him to return him to life if he ever chose to."

"And that was the only one?"

"Yes.."

"I see.." Janna stood up and slapped Jade across the face before storming out of the room. Heckapoo stood up and followed after her.

"So that was his only chance to come back?" Kelly's voice was flat and without emotion.

"Yes."

"He gave it up to save Janna and you accepted without hesitation?"

"Yes."

"Then Thank you for telling me this.. And I hope she forgives you." Kelly stood up and left, closing the door and leaving Jade in the dark once again.

"Janna wait!" Heckapoo yelled running after the raged induced girl. She had to run with all of her might to keep up with her before finally grabbing her hand. Janna wouldn't turn to face her.

"Why did you do that!"

"..sor.." Janna murmured.

"What?"

"I'm sorry.." Janna turned to reveal her face covered in tears. The tears flowed like rivers drenching her face. When she planned on seeing Jade again she'd even put on some mascara which now ran down her face. She sobbed painfully as Heckapoo still held tightly on her arm. She pulled her in to her and held her. Stroking her hair gently.

"..Don't be silly.. You have nothing to be sorry for.."

"I do.. It's my fault.. It's like you said.. If I ignored it someone would end up getting hurt and you were right.. Thanks to me Dox is dead." Janna sobbed uncontrollably. Heckapoo felt tears start to build up on her own eyes. Trying to be there for a friend hadn't really allowed her to accept that Dox could have had a second chance but she knew him enough to know he would have hated if he had lived while she died.

"You're wrong. Yes, you should have told everyone and done more to prevent yourself getting hurt but you are not responsible for Dox.. He already died.. And I already said goodbye to him. If he had that vial he could have come back but chose not to. He has his reasons and one day he will tell me them but right now I cannot possibly love that man any more than I already do as even in death he protects us all and looks after us. He really is the perfect idiot. Although it was a high cost I'm happy that I know he's out there and everyone who we came to protect and save are okay. We won Janna.. We won."

Janna's knees gave way and she fell to the floor. Heckapoo fell with her and the two sobbed their hearts out as the students kept the hallway clear to give them their space. Higgs came back from destroying the signal interference to find Kelly crying into Marco's arms. He was still unconscious but thankfully he was alive.

"Marco.. I need you to wake up.. I'm sorry." Higg's heard Kelly cry into his chest.

"I'm not strong without you.. I'm weak and pathetic.. I couldn't protect you or the people we love.. Once again I forced Dox to give up everything to protect us. Why is it always him?" Kelly's sobs began to make her voice unable to make out. Higg's wanted to go in and support her but felt guilty for both intruding on their moment and for how she treated Kelly before.

She carried on walking until she found Ludo and the other students. They had found the kitchen and were now all silently eating. A battle was won, with only a few injuries for their side but they could all tell that this had been a fight that no one really came out the victor and that the war had only just begun.

* * *

/

 **"You are really a hopeless disciple aren't you?"** Fate stared down at the downtrodden Dox as he laid upside-down on the sofa. He looked up to see her and smile. She bent down and flicked him on the head.

"What? I thought you'd be pleased?" Dox sat up as Fate took a seat beside him. She sighed heavily at his comment.

 **"Index.. Who is my Guardian?"**

"Me?" He answered confused.

 **"Who was that vial rewarded to?"**

"Me?"

 **"Now.. Who do you imagine I intended to drink said vial?"**

"Well.. Since you're the Goddess of Fate you probably saw this coming and prepared me for it. It was to save Janna's life and for that thank you." Dox answered with a smile turning in time to see her fist coming at him. He dodged and rolled back before feeling his legs get taken out from underneath him and end up on the floor. She stood over him looking down.

 **"You are an idiot. I intended for you to have your life back you moron. I saw that there would be death yes but it never meant that it had to be. I wanted you to choose to take your life back and live."**

"Why?"

 **"Because you deserve to live. I may not have cared in the beginning about you since you had completed your purpose but I watched. I watched you faithfully fulfil your duty to me again as their Guardian. To lead them along in secret and keep my fate pure. I wanted to reward you for that. My favourite Jester and subject. Lady was sneaky and knew the gift I gave you, Like me she saw death but selfishly used you to save the love she desires. I don't blame her but believe me she will hear about this."** Fate held her fist into a ball and shook it in the air making Dox laugh out loud.

 **"What's funny?** " She asked looking down again.

"Maybe I was wrong, personality included you might just be more beautiful than Lady after all. You are pretty funny My Goddess. Sadly I ruined things again" Dox laughed harder making Fate smile at him before pausing.

 **"Wait? Did you rate me lower than her?"**

"No..."

 **"Oh now it's personal."**

Dox's screams could be heard from across the abyss as the two tried to hide their true feelings over what had happened. One felt robbed of their kindness and the other felt death once more.

 _ **~A life was given, just one not two,**_  
 _ **He chose death and life for you,**_  
 _ **Left to rot in a forgotten space,**_  
 _ **Where he will wait knowing his place.**_

 _ **One now rest no longer whole,**_  
 _ **He gave his all and broke his soul,**_  
 _ **With nothing but hope he stood his ground,**_  
 _ **And with that hope he was truly found.**_

 _ **The lover cries for past and present,**_  
 _ **Wondering where all her hope went,**_  
 _ **She mourns her friend while holding tight,**_  
 _ **To the one who shall remain her light.**_

 _ **The one who was saved shuns her mind,**_  
 _ **Now aware of the dangers it will find,**_  
 _ **The cost of life was one she can't handle,**_  
 _ **As with her death she blew out anothers candle.**_

 _ **Her blue chose to put her first,**_  
 _ **Even if he will now be cursed,**_  
 _ **He chose his love that he felt was true,**_  
 _ **Even though the cost he knew.**_

 _ **The fiery one knows of too much trouble,**_  
 _ **Aware that in time it is sure to double,**_  
 _ **Her friend, Her lover who was more,**_  
 _ **Worth what Fate has in store.~**_

A/N: Once again apologises for the delay with this chapter and I hope you all enjoy. If you have any questions or queries feel free to PM me and ask or just leave a review. :) Lemme know what you thought and I hope to have the next chapter out faster. Thank you all for reading :)


	7. Tomorrow Is Another Day

**Keeping Your Promise #7**

 **Tomorrow Is Another Day**

 **A/N: Really struggled for a long time with how to write this chapter and if it was the right path for the story but finally settled. Honestly didn't like how it was the first time and deleted it and started again. Repeated this a few times and I think I'm finally happy with how it turned out. Slightly longer than usual but I hope you enjoy. Sorry for the wait.**

 **Lerans: Thanks for the review and sorry about the disappointment :3 for now I want to keep the third party in their story hidden. (the bad party) Things will still be a bit shaky for a while but they'll make their appearance. Thanks :) I honestly wasn't 100% on it but I felt like it finished the chapter well. The whole of the rescue has lasted half this story so far and the impact it has had will resound with the characters for a while which I think you'll see more in this chapter :) Hope you like it.**

 **Kerbolious: Sadly it wasn't the real tie up X'D sorry but it's this one, the last chapters end was the group before the real emotions and consequences set it.. sorry again. Physical progress I admit hasn't really happened in the last few but with all the pieces in place now the story can progress :) we can finally see what the rest have been up to in the next chapter and get the ball rollin'. Thank you again for pointing it out XD can't believe i missed it but yep I want Ludo to be more involved too as you will see. Dox and Fate's relationship will stay.. odd.. it's like a friendship with a doctor. They are nice and care about how you are but only because it's their job. Theres always going to be a professional distance and in this chapter we see yet another side to Fate. Kelly and Marco's interactions... and Janna's progress... I'll just let you read X'D Thanks again for the review and hope you enjoy.**

 **Fartedandcraped: (In response to your reviews of Flowers and Stars) If you continue reading and reach this far thank you for all your supportive comments :) it was lovely to read and I'm glad you had as much fun reading it as I did writing it. Thank you and trust me the favorite button means enough :3.**

/

* * *

A heavy sigh echoed in the empty house as Dox cleaned up the mess of Fate's revenge, it wasn't much so he didn't mind. He used his hands to sweep the mess into the bag. Dox felt pain pulse from his hand and saw blood escaping from a cut. Waving his hand he sighed again as nothing happened. He went to the kitchen and pulled the first aid kit from the cupboard before sitting down beginning to patch his wound in silence. Dox's mind was stuck on the last few words that Fate left with him.

 **"The chances of the people you love all living through this was higher if you went back.. No matter what happens it isn't your fault though".** And with that cryptic hint she left him alone. When he had first met the goddess he hadn't thought much of her. She was childish, rude and self centered. If it didn't matter to her it didn't matter and maybe that was still true however Dox had seen another side to her. She had come to cheer him up when once again life eluded him. He was a person born to die and was now stuck dead. He didn't regret the choice to save Janna, he never would, but knowing what he had left behind hurt him more than a glass cut in the afterlife possibly could.

He sighed again deeply when he heard the phone ring. After briefly pausing to make sure the bandage was firmly in place he went to answer it.

"Hello?" Dox asked, not sure what to expect.

 _"Sup Deadman.. You know you have really scary friends right?"_ Came a jokey voice from the receiver.

"Jade? Are you okay?"

 _"Yeah I'm fine.. I mean I'm tied up in a cupboard in the dark and I had to use my tongue to dial but other than that.. I'm pretty good. What about you? How you holding up?"_

"Honestly.. Better than I thought I would but that's mainly thanks to Fate.. Apparently even Goddesses have a heart and sorry.. I take it they know the truth then?"

 _"Really? She always struck me as a cold person, I've only seen her a few times and all she cared about was her own amusement, regardless of who got hurt.. Strange huh? Anyway I'm glad to hear you're doing okay, I am sorry you don't get to come back though.. You don't deserve to stay dead."_ Jade paused and let the conversation go silent before remembering Dox's last question.

 _"Oh and yeah I told them everything.. Apostle of Love and the only link to their **super** best friend."_ Jade laughed coldly which Dox couldn't help but notice.

"…what's the problem Jade.."

 _"What? Nothing?"_

"Just tell me.."

 _"You should have seen how they looked at me.. Like I honestly believe that they would rather I be dead to have you back. Janna resents me for taking the choice away from everyone and choosing her and I don't know why but I'm beginning to think that no matter what I do I will always be a runner up to the memory of you.."_ Jade fell silent again as Dox took in his words. Dox smiled, he knew that he shouldn't but who was around to judge him. Knowing that he was still loved so much by his friends meant so much to him and only strengthened his belief that saving Janna was the right choice.

"Jade.."

 _"Yes?"_

"Don't take it to heart man. Special circumstances aside they wouldn't wish misfortune on a single soul, they are all better than that. Give them time and they will accept that WE, not just you, made the decision and they'll come to terms with it. I can't help how they remember me.. Maybe its unfair.. They knew me for a year, Marco, Heckapoo and Kelly a little more, and in that time my life was devoted to them. I broke my mind, body and spirit to keep them safe and happy. Don't compare yourself to a dead man.. I had a year to protect them, you have the rest of your life so I expect you to also end up here one day, many years in the future, and tell me all about Vu Jade Agape, the Apostle of Love. It better be one hell of a story." Dox finished smiling again. It felt like he was talking to his younger self.

 _"…Thanks.. I see why they miss you so much.."_

"You can only miss what is gone and that plays a big part of it. Anyway I wanted to give you some advice, you up for taking it?" Dox questioned more as a challenge.

 _"Sure thing?"_

"Practice some basic healing magic, with your innate talent and skill even if you aren't suited for it you should be able to master the basics. It is always useful to know how to heal.

You are too over confident in a fight, either draw it back a tad or find someone to watch your back and support you in your short comings.

Girls are strange and you will never understand them but it doesn't mean you stop trying. You love Janna and you will have to work to win her love back. She may resent you for what you did but she will forgive you.. You couldn't live without her, you should tell her that." Jade listened attentively. He rolled onto his back as his side was growing numb.

The line remained silent before Jade spoke for the final time.

 _"I'll keep them safe Index.. I'll protect them in your place."_

"Thank you." Dox replied. A quiet clicking sound let him know that the call ended. He put the phone down and sat back. He felt the pressure he had been dealing with grow lighter with each moment he remembered their talk.

"I can't mope around forever.." Dox jumped out of his chair and headed to the library. He was determined to find any information he could on the God of War. Anything to help his friends. He grabbed all the books he thought might help and sat at his desk.

"Time to work". He said with a smile before opening for first book.

* * *

/

 _"Lights flashed as if they're spinning in and out of view, vision distorted. Screams all around.. People moving. Four? Now Three? One is gone and one is fading. More screams. Smells like iron. Blood. Mine? Theirs? Where am I?"_

Marco sat up and opened his eyes or at least he tried. He couldn't see out of his left eye. He held his hand up and only found empty space where his eye should have been. Marco looked at his fingers to see blood, his blood. He stood up and realized he was in a pool of blood and carcasses. Guilt flooded him as the taste of sick filled his mouth, he had done this. He had killed all these people. Marco looked up and felt the sick escape his mouth. He ran over to the side of the room where he found Kelly's distorted voice yelling something to Janna as she was pinned to the wall by a spear. Marco tried to grab them but his hands went right through. He tried to call out but his voice was croaky and weak, either way he wasn't able to interact. He watched Kelly break down in tears as a boy came running in. He took Janna down and cradled her in his arms. Marco recognized the boy, he was Janna's student but his name eluded him. Marco tried to get through to him but the boy was distracted by grief and despair.

The scene froze around Marco and he watched as the blood began to swirl, circling around the room. A hole appeared in the middle of the room and was draining the blood and guts away. Marco grabbed at the chains on the wall as he felt his whole body grow light. The walls were now the ceiling and the floor the walls; the whole room was spinning. He tried to grab with both arms but his right arm seemed to be broken and as the blood that covered his hands spread he found himself slipping down the chain. The room changed back to normal but the whirlpool of blood continued to suck him in. He noticed the blood rising higher and tried to keep the others in view but it was no good as before long Marco found himself submerged in the blood, unable to keep his grip he let go and was swallowed by the floor.

* * *

/

Heckapoo found herself sitting alone in the battle scarred castle. She had left Janna to come to terms with what had happened and because Heckapoo herself needed time to process everything. The cold and wet stone helped cool her down as her emotions were overwhelming her.

 _"He could have come back…"_

 _"We could have been together… happy… we could have made a family together… I would have given everything to be with him…"_

 _"But he was watching… he knew I needed her and she needed me… he did it for all of us… not just her."_

 _"But at what cost?."_

Heckapoo pushed against the cold wall rising to her feet. She walked aimlessly through the halls of the castle. She could hear cheering echoing from the dinning room. All of the students had decided that they could be happy with what happened and were now celebrating their first "Field Trip" and the first "Practical Exam" as Janna had whimsy worded it. She let the sound elude her and walked further. She paused outside the room where Marco was resting. She could hear Kelly inside sobbing. After hearing about Jade's past and the fate of their mentor and final member of their trio she had broken further. She needed to talk to Marco, to fix things and talk them out. Hard to do when your partner is still not waking up even with magical aid.

Heckapoo left after hearing someone approaching, her next steps took her to the room Jade was tied up in. She wanted to burst in and demand more answers, to get the truth she deserved… but Janna deserved the first shot at the lover boy. Finally losing all interest in her surroundings Heckapoo walked from the broken down wall that use to separate the inside from the out. Rain poured down heavily still and sizzled as it came into contact with her. She walked down, as if walking on the air itself before coming to the field where she had fought before. It seemed simple then. Rescue Marco, no questions asked but now all she had was questions. She curled up into a ball and let herself be a victim to the elements.

"Miss Scissor Lady?" A shrill voice asked quietly in the dark. She looked up only slightly to see Ludo staring at her worried. He's little arms wobbled as he tried to hold an umbrella over the pair of them.

"You should not be out here alone… I mean.. Why.. Why aren't you inside?" He was trying his hardest to hold the umbrella up and be there for her. He was afraid of her, always had been.

"Here.. Let me show you a trick." Heckapoo reached forward and took the umbrella. She used her magic to make a hand rise from the ground and hold onto it. He looked on in glee at the new magic. He tried it himself and a little hand shot out which could only pale in comparison to her one. She smiled as he cheered in glee. That's the sort of creature he was, he saw the positive rather than the negative. If he lost a fight he'd remark how close he had come and they'd win next time. A rare quality for someone who knew so much pain.

"Thank you Miss Lady… ermm…" He shuffled awkwardly.

"Why am I here?.."

"Yes!" He cheered again glad he didn't have to try and ask it again.

"…Before I say, Tell me Ludo, what do you know about Dox A. Par?" Ludo paused and thought deeply about her question.

"He was a bad man.. He did what I could not and stole the wand but he went too far and took Marco and the green one. The Princess was very upset and she was broken… I realised that if that's what taking it from her was like I would never desire the wand again.. He returned the wand but hurt people.. Good people. He toyed with the men who hunted him and in the end he died when Marco and Kelly were rescued.." Heckapoo felt her heart sink with every word. Ludo was quite oblivious to the world and if he saw Dox this way then how did the world view him.. As a monster?

"But.." Ludo went to continue.

"But?"

"…Ludo hears things. I'm small and people often don't see me. I am usually invisible to most and forgotten about. I've heard how Marco and the others talk about him. To them, he is a hero.. A sacrifice. It sounds like he gave his life up like the Index intended too." Heckapoo smiled as she listened. He was a hero. She almost went to end the conversation when his last sentence hit her.

"Ludo.. What do you mean "The Index"?" Her voice cracked with hesitation. Ludo paused in thought and tried to remember it all.

"Ludo met a guy who helped him see sense. Dennis was trying to help me but I was too broken to see. I ran from Dennis, from everything and everyone. I wanted to disappear and just as I thought it the Index took me away. He picked me up and carried me to a small door. I thought he was going to kill me but he made me a drink he called.. Tea. He just talked to me. Asked if I was okay.. At first I didn't want to answer but he seemed nice so I talked with him. I told him everything I remember. He listened all night and when we were done he told me how I can find my happiness. I was confused at first and worried as the bad thoughts wouldn't go away. But he waved his hand and made them go away. He told me to stick with Dennis and eventually my path would appear, say yes to change and follow my heart. And now Ludo is here, he saved Marco and helps the Princess. I'm happy. I asked him though what about his happiness… He told Ludo he has already experienced it. He loved and lost and now he just needs to wait. I asked what for and he told me that he has a date with death, he would be a hero and then his life would end. I said good luck and goodbye and then left. I was immediately back home and he was gone." Ludo finished glumly. Apparently he hadn't really thought about his helper until now.

"What color was his hair.." Heckapoo managed to say holding back the tears.

"Bright red.." Heckapoo smiled and then burst into tears. She couldn't hold it back any longer. She felt his little wings wrap around her to comfort her and returned the action.

The wind blew and rain continued to fall, covering up the sounds of her tears in the night. Eventually she managed to stop. She rubbed her already sore eyes and turned to Ludo.

"Thank you.. I'll come inside soon.. I just need a little while longer on my own.." He looked hesitant to leave but obliged leaving her there.

"Wait Ludo.. Your umbrella?" She called out to him.

"I don't need it, water proof feathers and all. It was for you." And with not another word the little bird disappeared back inside. Heckapoo stared at where he vanished suddenly regretting always thinking of him badly and never giving him a chance. She looked out into the storm and let her emotions form into words.

"You held my heart and I held yours too,  
But you broke mine because its what you do,  
You made choices without me in mind,  
You broke everything and called it kind.

You went ahead and saved the day,  
You made sure it went all your way,  
You held my hand and then let it go,  
That broke my heart I want you to know,

You broke my heart and took yours too,  
I was left with neither that's down to you,  
I can't be angry because of what you've done,  
You are a hero now, the day is won,

But now I'm alone.. All without you,  
Coming back was yours to do,  
But you won't come and I can't go..  
You broke my heart.. You need to know."

She screamed out into the night, once again drowned out by the rain before picking herself back up and heading back to the castle.

* * *

/

Marco felt like he was being sucked through a tunnel as he struggled to hold his breath. A few seconds passed and he found himself being thrown onto the floor. The blood crashed down with him before all running out the door leaving him gasping for air. Marco stood up, leaning on a post to hold himself up and walked to the light source. Marco found himself looking at a familiar sight. He stood on the balcony staring down at the Butterfly Kingdom covered in flames, in ruin and overrun by foul creatures. He barley had time to register where he was when someone flew past him. Marco leaned forward to see a red headed person carrying a small man in his hands. Marco watched the person as they used magic to avoid falling to their death and fly across the kingdom. Marco tried to lean further hoping he could make out the person with his working eye when he felt pressure from behind him. He felt his body grow light again as he fell from the balcony. He felt himself falling towards the ground. He searched himself for his scissors or anything he could use to save himself but it was futile. The people who captured him took everything from him and he used his last resort to save Higgs.

 _"I hope she survived.."_ Marco thought as he raised his arms to shield his eyes from the ground. He closed his eye and waited for the impact. However instead of crashing to his death he found himself being thrown out of the ground and landing a short distance from the entrance to the Butterfly Kingdom. He stood up with great effort and looked across to the bridge. The red haired man sat facing someone drawing near. Now Marco was sure of it. He knew what was about to happen. He moved as quick as he could in his condition, his arm full of pain as he hit it against himself. He limped closer to see the red head get kicked across the bridge. Marco fell down. He felt pain throbbing deep in his legs but ignored it and got back up. The man was being dragged away now. Marco bit his lip trying to ignore the pain and limped faster.

It was no good however as the man began to glow and raised his hand to his attacker. Marco raised his hand to shield his eye from the light and explosion. He was thrown back by the force and rolled across the ground. Each movement now was painful and each moment he found himself drowning in misery. He raised his head to see the aftermath of the explosion but instead he was far from the kingdom. No smoke rose from its direction and it seemed in one piece. Marco turned to see a dome like aura near him. It was black and seemed to contain someone inside. He turned to see a familiar sight. The attacker from the bridge holding down the girl he loved.

* * *

/

Higgs watched as the students rang out more cheers, lighting up the room with every kind of magic. She pretended to join in and thanks to that she was being left alone. She knew how to pretend to smile, to pretend to frown.. To pretend. To get where she was wasn't due to luck she had to fight for her right to be a Knight. When she had first been chosen as a squire it wasn't because she was the best candidate… it was because she was the worst. She was picked as a punishment game, the Knight that lost had to take the weakest, poorest and most pathetic candidate and raise them. She had watched as the Knights had laughed at her and she decided deep in her heart that she would show them what she could be… and here it was. A scared girl whose only alive because the lucky one saved her. Unsure if she's jealous because of his lover or because of his friend.. A weak woman. That's all she could see herself as. She tried to get rid of the thought but it haunted her.

She looked over and saw Ludo shaking himself off, the little bird probably got lost and ended up outside. She watched as one student ran over with a towel while one was preparing some warm food for him. He'd done it, he'd made friends and earned their respect. Even he had done it. She got up and left the dining room determined to try and get through the storm and let the world know that all was well.… _"Well isn't really the right word"_ Higgs thought to herself. She let herself get lost in her thoughts and thought back to one of Marcos earlier days as her Squire.

"So what's the job?" He asked eagerly. She had tried to get him to do everything she had done and worse but he pulled it off.. Easily.. And with a smile. She hated to admit it but he was pretty amazing but today was official business.

"We're heading into town and trying to find out about a suspected slave ring"

"What in the Butterfly Kingdom?" Marco asked shocked.

"Yes here.. Look dude no matter where you go there will always be shadows behind the light and where there's people there's filth but todays just recon so keep those hands holstered. Don't wanna start another dance craze now do we?" She teased laughing and racing off. He yelled after her but she laughed too much to hear.

They spent hours questioning people and investigating but it turned up empty. Higgs sat down drained and took a swig of her drink. Some men walked passed her and laughed. She ignored them but they decided to stand nearby and chat.

"Is that her?"

"The lady knight that's asking bout the slaves? Yeah that's her"

"Maybe she's hoping someone will want to buy her?"

"Not a chance in the underworld.. I'd say you could get a bargain for damaged goods though." Higgs anger reached its limit when she heard scuffling, she looked up to see Marco had beaten and restrained them all. She smiled seeing the anger in his face, he was angry for her sake.

After letting some guards take the men back to the dungeons the two sat silently in the courtyard.

"Hey Higgs.."

"Yeah Dude?"

"You should ignore what they said. It's bull crap. You are beautiful and funny and amazing and anyone would want you by their side. Damaged goods? More like Priceless. God I want to pound them so bad." He cracked his knuckles and she laughed.

"Easy Marco, you think I'd let some losers get me down? Now you are underestimating me and for that I expect 10 laps of the kingdom and when you get back we'll see about asking some losers some questions." She punched him lightly in the arm and he stood up and saluted before running off. He ran 10 laps a day anyway as his training so he wouldn't mind. She wiped a tear from her eye.

"What's priceless is that someone like me got to be friends with someone like you.." She laughed again before heading into the castle.

Higgs let the memory ease her pain. She may be a woman but she was a beautiful one.. She was funny and she was amazing and she wasn't about to be broken by this. She picked up the pace heading to the comms room.

"You saved me again.."

* * *

/

"No. Not her." He spat. Blood dripped from his lip and mixed in with the dirt below. He forced himself up once more and moved faster than his body could handle. He managed to reach them in time and tried to charge at the attacker only to fall through him. He turned back to see him plunge his fist into Kelly's chest. In the distance he could see himself with a face full of pain and suffering. The other him ran to Kelly and began to cling to her body tightly.

 _ **"Really looks familiar from this angle doesn't it? That boy whose name you can't remember looked exactly like you did in this moment. It's odd how many people have died for you isn't it?"**_ Marco turned to see who was speaking but only found an open portal waiting. He used his left arm to drag himself to it. His face full of rage as he pulled himself through leaving his past behind.

Marco fell from the sky, landing on a dumpster and bouncing to the ground. He groaned in pain as his whole body hurt. Rain fell from the sky and crashed to the ground beside him. From behind someone grabbed his hair and pulled his head back forcing him to watch the scene in front of him. A couple arguing while holding a baby. The man knocked the baby and woman down before kicking the baby. Marcos screams were silenced by the rain. He felt the hand let go of his head and he crawled to the dumpster. The father had thrown his baby in the bin not caring for its life. Marco pulled himself up and took the baby out. He fell to the ground oblivious to the pain. The baby was alive. Marco used his magic to heal the wounds and smiled as the baby started to cry, not enjoying the rain dripping on its face.

 _ **"No no.. That's not right Marco, you didn't make it in time... remember?"**_ Hands shot forward and took the baby from him. He heard the sound of the lid opening and closing and then felt himself being dragged away. He tried to resist but it was no good he had no strength left. He watched desperately as the dumpster faded from view and the babies screams silenced. He felt the ground give way below him as he fell from height again. This time landing harshly on a marble floor.

"Stop.. Please.."

 _ **"Oh really? You're going to beg? Don't insult me Marco, we both know you're better than that."**_

"Who-"

 _ **"You are insulting me again. You know exactly who I am."**_

Marco paused briefly he used the last of his strength to push his body into a sitting position and face the one who was torturing him with his past.

"Darkco." Marco spat the blood that filled his mouth to the floor before looking at the dark dimension version of himself.

* * *

/

Jade hadn't really interacted with many people in his strange lifetime but even someone as socially inept as him could tell it was awkward.

Janna had come into the room, cut him free and offered him a chair. She sat opposite him and stared at him. He could see she had been crying as the bloodshot eyes that were fixed on him met his eye line. She didn't speak however and he felt it wasn't his place to. He had said everything he could, now all he could do was listen.

That had been the plan for the last half an hour but Jade was beginning to lose his mind with the errie silence that filled the room. In that time he'd heard people moving about outside and wondered if he should call for someone.. Anyone.. But wasn't really sure what it would accomplish. In the end he decided to try to speak.

"Jan-"

"Shut up and don't speak." She cut in coldly. He sighed from the response but was honestly glad she had reacted at all.

"But Jan-"

"QUIET!" She screamed at him. She began to pace around the room, he could feel her emotions.. She was hurt, angry, confused and felt betrayed. He wanted to be there for her but wasn't sure how.

"Why me?" Janna suddenly asked.

"What?"

"I said why me?.. You came here to do whatever it is you said but why me.. Why fall in love with me? Why rob someone of their life for me? Why me?" She sat down again and stared into him. He looked back and knew that she needed to know. It was tearing her up inside.

"I was signed up to the magic school as it was deemed the most likely location for me to come into contact with your group. Fate and Lady decided this and I obeyed. Index taught me everything I might need to know to get by. Magic was no problem but I had poor social skills…"

"Get to the point! I don't care right now that you took a friendship class from a dead guy." Her voice was blunt and stern.

"I met you first, it was a coincidence really as the plan was to meet Glossaryck and hope he picked up on who I was and would assist me. You, however, blew into my life, got me in your class and started to teach me. I learned so much from you and being with you made me so happy.. At first I didn't understand the feelings. I wanted to be beside you always. I wanted to help you and support you and soon I began to need you in my life.

Index told me once, You never know how much you loved something until its gone and I understand what he meant now. When I found you.. Pinned to the wall.. I broke.. I lost myself.. And when your warmth was fading and your pulse stopped.. I realized I loved you so much that I didn't want to live without you. I begged my Goddess to save you. I begged as an apostle of Love for the person I love and was ignored. And then he rang.. And he told me he could save you. I chose you because living without you is not something I can do anymore.

Index may hate me.. But he doesn't regret saving you and neither do I. If you need to hate us, hate me… I'm the one that gave you the elixir and if you must know why you.. It's because you are the most special and important person in this world. You mean more to me than the stars, the planets, the dimensions and everyone in them. I would sacrifice life itself for you.. And I'm not sorry." Jade held back tears as he braced himself for the backlash. He knew she'd hate him but that's was okay. "As long as you're alive you can hate me all you want."

Janna moved quickly and punched him in the face before pulling him into a hug and crying into his shoulder. Jade wasn't sure what felt less real the pain on his face or the tears that dripped onto him. He held her tightly back as she cried her eyes out. She moved closer and kissed him. Her lips pressed against his violently, he could taste her tears and felt the wet from her cheeks and nose press onto him. She pushed him away and walked back to her chair.

"I hate you.. I think I always will for this.. But I love you too.. Thank you for saving me." Silence filled the room once more as they sat solemn in their situation.

* * *

/

He smiled back before sitting on his throne. He wore his white shoes and trousers and signature blue hoodie.

 _ **"Correct Marco. Bet you never thought you'd be seeing me again"**_ Darkco smiled before winking at the broken boy in front of him.

"How?."

 _ **"That's a good question, I mean I could just be the figment of your imagination as your body tries to recover and your mind tries to repress the things you did."**_

"Are you?"

 _ **"Nope, not at all I'm like 75% real over here. I am Marco Diaz, the one who tried to kill you and everyone you love. I would have ended both our worlds for my own self satisfaction. But you thwarted my plans and doomed me to die by sparing my life."**_ Darkco remained smiling. He enjoyed seeing his adversary so beaten. The shock on his face was more than he could have asked for.

 _ **"But you wanted to know how? Well you see our lovely Goddess who gives out blessings. She gave a reward to your red headed friend. Once she had she came to deal with me. She deemed that me going straight to the after life was**_ _ **too easy**_ _**so she gave me the same reward as your friend. A place to stay and wait, watching over you and everyone else as you happily live out your lives. It's funny, back home we have a saying 'One mans junk is another mans treasure' and that's the case here. His reward is my punishment. I get a small box with a screen watching you happily move on. Except.. All isn't great is it? She rejected you and now look at you! You look like crap!"**_ Darkco laughed loudly. He gripped the corners of the throne with tears in his eyes. Marco remained locked onto him never dropping his guard. Darkco noticed and sighed.

 _ **"Look as much as I'd love to I'm not here to hurt you. I don't really want to spend the rest of your life watching through a small screen. So when the Goddess came to visit I asked for a deal. I help you out a little and she reduces my punishment."**_ Marco's eye didn't leave him.

"How is anything you've just shown me helping me? You made me watch the people I love die again! Twice by your hand! How is that helping me!" Marco spat towards him. Darkco stood up and sat cross-legged in front of him.

 _ **"I'm not your friend Marco.. I'm literally only just an ally and that's only to satisfy my own wishes. I won't baby you, I won't shelter you and I sure as hell won't make sure your feeling chipper. I'm going to help you and part of that is you realizing that people die. Get over it! So you killed a few dozen people? Who gives a fuck. Marco you are training to be a Knight of a kingdom and that means you are a weapon. A weapon used to slay their enemies. I know all about your hospital plans and magic medical crap. Honestly it sounds cool I mean youd be a pioneer of earth and Mewni alike. I know you will make Mum and Dad proud but what good is that if you are dead? You survived, good job, surviving is half the battle."**_ Darkco watched for his response. This interaction amused him to no end.

"I'm not like you.. I don't like killing.."

 _ **"Then you are just like me. I didn't enjoy killing either but I found it to be both necessary and useful. Marco you need to learn that death is just a part of life. Kelly died fighting for you. Index died twice both past and present but regrets none of it. Janna dove in front of a spear to protect you with no hesitation. They were not willing to die but they all died for you. They won't be the last to Marco. It's a different battlefield now. It's not Ludo and his merry monsters this is war. People die. If you are not prepared to kill for those you love then the ones you love will be killed. It's life. So I need you to be ready to kill."**_ Darkco stood up and face Marco readying a stance.

 _ **"Kill me Marco"**_ Darkco smiled down at him making Marco scowl at him with resent.

"I'm nothing like you. I wouldn't kill for no reason. Anyway I can't even move how am I meant to fight you."

 _ **"This is all inside your mind Marco, you are as injured as you think you are. You can fight just fine. Plus if you need a reason, it's simple. If you don't you won't be leaving here again and guess what? With enough time maybe your body might just let another Marco take the controls. I could live again.. As you."**_ Marco face flushed with rage as he tried to stand. He was still shaky but everything but his left eye seemed to be working.

 _ **"Hmm.. That eye is going to be a problem for you but I'm sure you'll be fine."**_ Darkco leapt forward and punched Marco square in the face forcing him down again. He then kicked him across the room.

 _ **"Hey look at that! This is just like the time before your little friend did like a Katie Perry and went up like a firework!"**_ Darkco's cruel laugh filled the room but it seemed like this was the tipping point as Marco jumped up and punched him in the face. Darkco staggered back wiping the blood from his mouth. **_"That's more like it.. Fight"_ **He thought to himself. He ran at Marco and pretending to swing a punch at his face. Marco dodged but Darkco grab his head and smashed it against his own. Once Marco was stunned he moved to his left side and began to hit him with jabs to the ribs and lower back before spinning and kicking him to the floor. Marco spat out some blood and ran at Darkco. His body full of a desire to fight. Suddenly the ground gave way and he fell out of sight.

Darkco smiled and wiped the rest of the blood away.

 _ **"How was that my Goddess? He seemed to have found his fighting spirit after all?"**_ Darkco turned to the doorway where Fate stood. She walked into the room and right up to him before slapping him across the room. The force sent Darkco flying into the wall with enough force that he took a little time to stagger to his feet.

 **"I never told you to show him the past like that. You almost broke him."** She scolded coldly. He rubbed the part of his cheek she slapped and winced from the pain.

 _ **"You wanted him ready to fight. He's ready. Don't ask for my help if you don't like my methods. I'd happily slit his throat or watch him fall into a pit of depression and guilt but you promised me I'd get a break from the Marco Show so keep your end of the deal and I'll keep mine."**_ Darkco spat blood out of his mouth and turned to face the Goddess however he found himself back in his small room. There wasn't a window in sight, just a small TV and a wooden chair. He returned to his chair and watched as the screen flickered on.

* * *

/

"Your heartbeat is stable. The others said that you should wake up soon... so why are you still sleeping?" Kelly asked. Her eyes were dry and sore from having no tears left to give. She rested her head upon his body listening out for his heart hoping to hear any change there might be. She ran her hand down his arm until it connected with his and entwined her fingers around his. She wanted to be as close to him as she could.

Marco's breathing was heavy in the silence. Kelly had heard some people moving outside and ignored it. She didn't care about anyone or anything at that moment but Marco.

"Please wake up soon.. I need you.. Dox is still out there.. Still helping us. I feel like I failed you and him, I'm sorry Marco I never meant to hurt you when I said no. It was never meant to be like that. I love you.. I love you with all my heart and nothing will ever change that but.. I was scared. I'm sorry. There is always going to be a fear behind that love. I love you but do you really love me like you think you do? I was just a friend who happened to be taken along. Dox never planned to save me but chose to as a test. You grew closer to me because you had no choice but to. I want our lives to be together forever but I can't shake the feeling that if you hadn't been 'kidnapped' with me you would never have started to love me like I already loved you. I wanted time to be the judge of us, I thought we'd have years before you asked. At least until we were in our early twenties but you just asked out of nowhere. I'm sorry. I love you and if I could go back and change it all I'd say yes a thousand times because now I know. No matter why you love me.. I love you and I can't live without you.. Please come back to me."

Kelly leant forward and kissed his cheek tenderly before standing up from the bed. She began to walk to the door to get some water when she heard a noise behind her. She turned around and looked at a now empty bed. She froze confused and only turned in time to see Marco rush at her. She didn't know how to react as he threw her to the bed and wrapped his hands around her neck squeezing the life out of her. Tears flowed down from above as rage filled his face. She tried to get him off of her but she was too tired and too shocked to put up much resistance. Her vision started to fade to black as his grip tightened. She stopped struggling and held her arm to his face lightly caressing his cheek _. "Maybe I deserve this.. For doubting and hurting you."_ Kelly closed her eyes and waited for it to end when she heard him say her name.

"Kelly?... Oh.. God... what have I done?" She heard him cry. He released the grip from her neck and crawled to the corner where he curled into a ball. She gasped desperately trying to take in as much air as she possibly could. She lay there for a moment recuperating hearing him crying beside her. When she felt ready she moved closer to him. He flinched from her touch and when she tried to speak she found her voice was strained greatly and barely able to form words.

"I'm sorry.. I'm so sorry.." Marco whispered to her.

"...It.. It..s.. Okay.. I'm.. Here.." She stuttered back. She wrapped her arms around him and they stayed silent.

Marco's head was pounding as he cried deeper and tried to work out if what he had experienced was real or not when a voice rang out inside his head.

 _ **"Oh.. It was real.. And it turns out Marco, I'm going nowhere."**_

* * *

 _ **/**_

Kelly, Marco, Janna, Jade, Heckapoo and Higgs sat in a room separated from the rest of their invasion force. The room was silent as everyone was still facing their demons and none wanted to be the first to share them. Jade looked at the people around him obvious to the hurt he himself had delivered and chose to bite the bullet.

"Everyone.." He started. Janna looked at him as if to beg him not to be the first but he ignored it. Someone had to get the ball rolling.

"I'm sorry.. I really am. I will never be able to make up for what I cost you and maybe if I'd been honest from the start none of this would have happened.." Jade paused, honestly forgetting where he had planned to take his speech when Marco took over.

"Don't blame yourself. You are new to this fight.. we've been fighting it a lot longer and should have been prepared. If we started blaming each other we would be going around in circles so don't blame yourself.. Jade." Everyone turned to Marco, it was the first time they'd heard him speak since he woke up. When he and Kelly had left the room she'd asked them all to gather.

"You got that right.. but who do I have to blame for the marks on her neck?" Marco turned to meet Janna's gaze. When she had seen Kelly she had immediately spotted the bruises forming on her neck. Back on earth to help her overcome her suicidal thoughts she had gone to a support group. One of the girls there had similar marks from an abusive partner and eventually led to her death. Janna's eyes carried a cold seriousness to them and Marco truthfully felt like she could kill with the look alone.

"That's my fault." Marco stated without hesitation. Janna materialised a fist and knocked him into the wall. She ran up to hit him but Kelly held her back.

"Wait.. stop.. please just listen." She pleaded. Janna backed down and retook her seat. Kelly helped Marco back to his and rubbed his face.

"When I was unconscious I kept having flashbacks.. to all of you dying.. to the fighting.. in my mind it didn't end. I was just trapped there fighting for my life and when I woke up I carried on doing just that. It's not good enough for an excuse and I have apologised already." Marco left out any details concerning Darkco, even when he had told Kelly the what he had seen.

 _ **"Already lying? Well that's just sad. Personally I think you should have just ended it for her, put her out of her misery."**_ His voice flooded Marco's mind but Marco didn't react and pretended he couldn't hear him.

"Okay... sorry." Janna muttered back.

"This rescue mission really didn't turn out the way I expected it to.." Higgs stated making everyone look at her. "What? It's true. We knew we'd be fighting for our lives and we're all here alive.. but why does it feel like we lost?" She questioned crestfallen.

"Because we did." Heckapoo answered glumly.

"We didn't lose! We rescued Marco and there's still people being freed in the underground by the students. How is that losing?" Kelly retorted.

"I don't know.. I think they're right. I'm broken, Jade's a liar, Janna died, I hurt you, Higgs blames herself, H-Poo lost Dox again and we don't even know if the Lycanthrope Prince we were here to save is one of the dozens of people I slaughtered to stay alive." Marco uttered in a monotone. He met no-ones gaze as his comments silenced the room once more. They all hung their heads thinking about what had happened. It seemed like a long time had passed, weeks even but in reality most of the events had taken place over one night. No one had probably even noticed that they had left the castle. They could be back by morning and no one would know the hurt they now carry onward.

"...That's probably true.. but it doesn't matter.." Jade leant forward and placed a phone on the table. They all looked at it confused.

"I am just a pawn in this game, I'm meant to be Index's replacement and your aid. However since the moment when I asked for her aid I can no longer feel the connection with my Goddess. Odds are that I'm staying here from now on and that means with no place to go and you all being the only people I know I can happily devote myself to helping you. Someone is causing this. Someone made it all happen from the very beginning and until now. Someone is controlling us and unless they are taken care of I'm scared that we will lose more than we could possibly imagine." Jade finished and waited for a response. None came so Janna nudged him and pointed at the phone.

"Oh.. I put it there to see if you guys wanted to call Index. I'm not sure it'll work but I think you should try." Everyone turned to look at it. What was just a simple phone on a table, an arms reach away, had become a life changing tool that seemed a lot further away. No one wanted to get their hopes up to lose it again but Heckapoo leant forward and picked it up. She clicked on his name and let the phone ring.

Dox was sitting watching and heard the phone ring. He leapt up to it and tore it off it's receiver.

"Hello?" Heckapoo asked down the phone.

"Hello.." Dox replied back. Silence fell on the line as they both waited patiently. Heckapoo turned to the others.

"There was no reply.." Heckapoo confirmed. Jade put his hand out to receive the phone before holding it to his ear.

"Hello?" Jade asked down the phone.

"Hello!" Dox yelled back.

"Calm it down dude! Why didn't you reply to her!"

"What are you talking about? I did reply? It's why I was yelling down the phone?" Dox answered back annoyed.

"One sec" Jade quickly put the phone on speaker. "Hey.. try speaking to everyone.. you're on speaker."

"..I barely even know what to say.. I miss you all so much.. I'm so sorry that I didn't come back sooner and I'm sorry Janna that I made you have to deal with taking that chance away. Heckapoo I'm sorry that I left you.. I'd do anything I could to come back to you I love you so much. Marco and Kelly... honestly I can't help but be so proud of you.. you are so strong and brave and I know you will overcome everything.. I love you all.." Silence fell again as his words echoed around the room. Jade looked at the others to see if they had a response but they all shook their heads.

"Index.. I'm sorry but.. I'm the only one who can hear you.. I'm sorry dude.. I'll call you back later." Jade hung up the phone and sat back in his chair before slamming his hand on the table and walking out. Janna chased after him leaving the room speechless.

"...Did anyone hear anything..?" Higgs asked everyone but once again they all shook their heads.

 _ **"I heard him.. every word.. wouldn't you like to know what he said Marco?"**_ Darkco's voice rang out inside his mind again. Marco felt pain fill his head and his left eye and slammed his fist onto the table. However unlike Jade Marco smashed the table. Splinters pierced his hands as he started to bleed. Gasps of shock rang out and some one began to heal him but he didn't notice any of it.

 _"TELL ME WHAT HE SAID!"_ Marco thought angrily.

 _ **"...Ask nicely."**_

 _"Fuck you."_

 ** _"Do you want to know or not?"_**

 _"..."_

 ** _"Well Marco? This is a one time offer make your choice."_**

 _"..Please tell me?"_

 ** _"That's better.. Most of it was unnecessary garbage.. apologises and well wishing that means crap now but he did spare a moment to tell you and Kelly just how proud he was of you. How he thinks you are brave and strong and that you'll overcome everything. How he loves you."_**

 _"...Thank you.."_

 ** _"Don't thank me. It makes me sick. I only told you so you'd stop being a pathetic cry baby. Get off your arse and do something or give up your body and let someone who will."_**

Silence.

 ** _"Back to ignoring me huh.. don't worry I'm going nowhere and you will soon see that you and me.. we are the same Marco. We are the same person and you will kill again."_**

Outside Janna managed to catch up to Jade. She grabbed his arm and made him stop. He tried not to look at her but she kicked him in the shin and forced him to look down.

"What was that?" She asked.

"...Index was speaking.. and none of you can hear him. He can hear you and see you but never interact. It's not fair. He should at least be able to speak to you." Jade moaned back in response.

"You don't get to feel bad about that Jade. You chose this for him and for me. No matter what happens he also chose this. I wasn't close to him like the others so it doesn't bother me but if he had someone to say and you heard him you better walk back in there and tell the people I care about what he said." Janna took her lecture tone with him that made him smile a bittersweet grin.

"Yes Miss.." She immediately swatted him around the head.

"I told you to only call me Janna.. if my own boyfriend is calling me Miss someone's going to think I have strange fetishes."

"Oh.. I'm your boyfriend?" Jade asked sincerly.

"Well duh? Why you gonna dump me now you know what I'm really like?" Janna asked back.

"Not a chance.. I'm never letting you go.."

"Good.. I'll probably forget that but good.." She joked. He looked at her shocked at how bad of a joke she had made before the two started to laugh before holding each other tightly. They turned to the window to see that the storm had final ended and that the sun had begun to rise. Tomorrow is another day.

* * *

/

 **A/N: Thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoyed :) if you have any questions please feel free to message me and I hope you review and let me know what you think :) sorry about the delay and I hope you continue reading.. (I promise the next chapter will be lighter.. in tone.. with like.. actual smiles..)**


	8. Actions Have Consequences

Keeping Your Promise#8

 **Actions Have Consequences**

* * *

 **A/N: A tad longer than the usual chapters but was hoping to progress the story more :) Hope you all enjoy the new pacing, let me know what you think :)**

* * *

 **Kerbolious: In regards to the Dox/Darkco dynamic, that will be covered later but for now I will say, Dox currently doesn't know that Darkco is back in any regard.  
I liked writing the Ludo/H-Poo moment, I feel a lot of the time Ludo as a character is underrated and he deserves redemption, Higg's too. It's probably not easy for someone like her to get to where she is, I wanted to explore that more and make her more of the main group. Thank you :) Originally the whole of Marco's dreams/flashbacks was one paragraph after another but I thought it would be good to break it up to add a flow of time so I broke it down between the other characters story arcs. :) glad you enjoyed the changed.  
Marco's eye will be explored more in this chapter but won't be resolved just yet. You'll begin to see that it is affecting him and will continue to do so and yep :) EYE PATCH :3**

 **LucklessBlock86: Thank you :) Glad you enjoyed it and sorry that it couldn't be a real song, if i was musically talented I'd love to actually make all the songs I write into real songs but alas XD I'm tone deaf.**

 **/**

* * *

Paper was strewed across the desk, falling to the floor where there was no more room. The curtains remained with a thick layer of dust blocking out all light that tried to seep through. Without knowing the time, one would have no clue as to the fact it was daytime. Movement occurred in the room, from under the piles of paper. Blonde hair popped out and from beneath Star started to rub at her bag filled eyes. They felt dry and sore from where she had stayed up too late once again. She leant forward and began to organise the papers once more. Falling asleep had cost her to lose her place and knock over the pile. A wave of her wand was all it took to undo that consequence. She, however, found no joy in continuing to read the reports on her desk.

After returning to the Butterfly Kingdom, a week after the incident, she had been bombarded with mountains of paperwork. Accounts of what had happened from students and friends alike. She had, as the one responsible for the Order of the Crescent Moon, to deal with the repercussions of the members she had recruited. In her absence Janna had used her authority to lead an assault on unknown opponents. As both a member of the MHC and a teacher at the now Royal endorsed school she had power and chose to use it. Star had to deem whether her actions were acceptable.

Heckapoo and Kelly, both people under her employ in multiple fashions were also being judged. Star hated doing so but it had to be done under the new laws she and Tom had created to protect the Kingdoms of Mewni. Everyone else involved needed to be accessed as well. Unknowingly what they had done is demonstrate that she had an unrivalled power in her control, that acted independently like a private army or a secret service. This time it was to rescue a friend who was about to lose his life but that in itself posed a new problem. The dimensions around her had united once already to save Marco Diaz and had witnessed the lengths she would go to save him. Once again it had been displayed that people in the position of power would take action to save him. What does that mean for his existence? Is it too great to lose? If that was the case, would it really be okay for him to fight on the front line to defend the kingdom?

Star banged her head against the desk. She could easily have made this all go away and be with her friends like she wanted. Instead the friends she wanted to be with so bad were being held under the castle, in the dungeon. The nobles who were unsatisfied with all the changes to the kingdom, the ones who only agreed originally under pressure from the United Dimensions, were using this as their chance to try to revert the Kingdom to its previous ways. To get rid of the magical school that wanted to teach the common folk, to decrease the number of powerful allies that the Princess had and especially stop monsters gaining positions of power.

Star's head throbbed under the stress of it all. Tom had to stay in the Lycanthrope Kingdom for a little while longer. Prince Sun had been confirmed to be alive and kept in a deeper part of the ruins. Along with others who seemed to be of rarer species they hadn't been used as fighters but as subjects. The experiments seemed to have eroded his mind as when freed he immediately attacked the closest student, if not for Ludo's quick thinking and using the hand magic Heckapoo had taught him to trip the Lycan the student would have been killed. Tom was subduing him enough so that Luna could try to get through to him. Apparently they had some sort of pack link that allowed they to communicate during a hunt and she was trying to use that link to restore his mind but it was a work in progress. Star knew he was staying to help people but she would have liked to have him by her side for this. He wasn't aware of what had happened since it could affect what was happening over there. Star looked back at the documents and began to piece together the full story for the trial ahead.

* * *

/

Jade and Marco sat staring at each other in complete silence, they had been sitting in the cell during Star's week of reviewing the reports. All attempts at small talk had been whittled down and reduced to silence. Jade had spent the last few days honing his magical power. He practiced the aspects of magic he had neglected and had been practicing his light and healing magic. Marco's body was stiff from all the damage, although he healed it physically he couldn't forget the pain. Without overcoming that he was vulnerable to losing his strength so he worked on his body. Although in limited space with Jade concentrating in the corner he had room to work out. Around day 6, however, both grew tired of their activities. Marco watched as Jade was trying to gain better control of his flow of magic. Marco realised that he was struggling at the exact same point that he himself had struggled with under Dox's teachings.

"You need to feed it more magic to fully understand the flow." Marco said all of a sudden. Jade looked up surprised, in the shock he let go of his control and the magic dissipated.

"..Erm.. care to explain more?" Jade responded.

"Magic to us who wield it.. Is like the very air we breathe. It's natural and.. Like clenching your fist or blinking. Things we can do from the moment we are born. For me, magic came later so I had to learn like you are now. Dox taught me how to control it better, he taught me to feel it as if it was part of me." Marco began to explain. Jade listened attentively and noticed with how much compassion and how much appreciation his words carried.

"So I'm meant to... feel it?" Jade asked intrigued.

"Yeah, the only way you can do it if by emptying yourself of magic. Release it from your body and begin to circle it around yourself. Try to keep it tightly, conform it to your bodies shape. Let every part of the outside of your body feel your power. Then when you can feel nothing but your own magic pull it all back inside you. Fill the void that you created. By doing this you can feel the magic both inside and out. You will begin to truly understand what your capability is at the moment and understand the flow of magic. By repeating the process again and again the flow will become like second nature. You will understand spells like you never could before, you will be able to bring out your full power." Marco read the words back from his mind. The kind words of his teacher and the lesson he learnt. Jade listened closely trying to understand the idea behind it but was missing the piece of the puzzle. Marco noticed his expression and smiled.

"You need to see it, don't you? Kelly was the same when it came to learning this. Although she had magic all her life it was something she was born into so trying to change the nature of it was unnatural to her. I only fully understood it because I used it to free myself from a sphere of dark energy." Marco recalled his trip down memory lane with Darkco. He could hear the vile being laughing in his own mind. He had been quiet this last week seemingly enjoying the fact that Marco was sharing in his situation.

"What happened?"

"You already know don't you? You were watching us?" Marco raised his eyebrow in question.

"No, I didn't start watching at that point. I only saw the later days of your lives together. When you found love with each other my Goddess started to pay attention. Before that it didn't really bother her too much."

"Well.. That was supposed to be the day Kelly died according to the future Dox came from. We had a plan to stop it. It was meant to be the day we proved that the future could be changed. Dox went to distract all our friends who at the time believed that he had kidnapped while me and Kelly waited for her cause of death.

As you know it was Darkco and his evil plans. We tried to fight him, with everything we had learnt, but it was painfully obvious we were outmatched. He hadn't been expecting us to surprise him and we forced him to use darker magic from the Dark Dimension."

"Dark Dimension Magic? I'd heard of it but it was apparently nothing like normal dark magic?" Jade quizzed.

"Correct, all magic from that dimension was dark, or at least the anti-version of the magic we use. However what he called upon can only be called the perversion of magic itself. Using blood of an original to forcefully buffer himself he tapped into magic that was considered forbidden. He became a monster, and at a later point it stopped being a metaphor. However in the fight he trapped me in a bubble of that magic. It was overwhelming. I felt like I was being drained both physically and mentally. Like I was being crushed by the very air around me. I called Dox for help and he told me to do what I have told you, except instead of releasing it back into myself I created a bomb around myself. I blew away his magic and ran to save Kelly."

"And you saved her then?" Jade asked with a smile, he had loved the story so far.

"No. She died." Marco replied.

"How is that possible!? She's alive and well?"

"Some magic is forbidden because it is too dangerous to be allowed to be used. Others are because if used incorrectly it comes at a great risk." Marco sighed deeply before standing and moving beside Jade. He materialised some magic in his hand and began to swirl it. At first it was red, then blue and then the colour changed again and again until it turned white. It began to glow and in his hand Marco held a bright white ball of light.

"The magic I used was the purest magic of all. It was the first of my own magic I had used pulled from the deepest parts of my being. I pulled everything i had to give it to her. I forced it inside of her and healed her. I restored her body and then brought her back to life. I pulled her back from deaths door and thought that I had gained an unfathomable power. Dox later showed me I was wrong. During a day, so insignificant that you'd not even write about it in a diary, he took me to somewhere unique. It was a divine beast, or at least one old enough to be considered one. It had been wounded during Meteora's rampage. A beast older than time itself, the magic that flowed off of it was purer than mine could ever have been. I tried to heal it but the moment I did I felt myself become burdened with great pain, my mind went black and I felt my heart tighten. I was going to die in that moment but the beast gave the last of its life to spare me. In its eyes I couldn't have seem more than a foolish child deluded by his own power. That would have been right." Marco moved his hand to his left eye. He had not regained any sight in it and had taken to wearing an black eye patch over it. Inside he was constantly trying to heal it but it seemed to have no effect.

"The easiest way to explain it.. Is that day I performed a miracle. Miracles don't happen twice, at least not in the same way. Janna being here now is a miracle and we should think of it as such. The beast died that day earlier than it was supposed to, thanks to me. Dox brought me there because he knew what would happen. He wanted me to understand that regardless of your power, your magic or anything you do death is always going to happen. You can't prevent that by pushing yourself to the extreme. Only our choices and the way we live out our lives define our death. After that I stopped trying to obtain the power to give life and trained to survive my prediction of death. With the people around me and the choices I made I changed fate." Marco closed his palm on the magic returning it to his body. Jade's heart was heavy, he could tell this wasn't a story Marco told often and honestly wondered if he had ever told anyone it. Life wasn't his to control so instead he shaped fate, a champion of fate indeed.

"Can you show me how to do it?" Jade asked earnestly. His deep blue eyes meeting Marco's. Marco smiled before returning to his bed. He crossed his legs and began to focus. Around Marco magic of Red and Gold began to swirl. The magic grew wider and wider until the whole of the cell and dungeon was flowing with his magic. Marco pulled it in tight and surrounded himself with it. Jade began to do the same. Blue, White and a little Black magic started to swirl. It joined with Marco's and spread further than even his had gone. He pulled it back in towards himself and the two started to glow brightly. Then, as if breathing it into themselves, the magic disappeared into their bodies. Marco's eyes glowed bright red while Jade's shone with a blue light. They circulated it inside their body and then released allowing themselves to relax.

They both laid on the bed and began to breath deeply. Marco raised his hands and inside a ball of magic appeared. Stable and with foundation of understanding. Jade repeated what he saw. The ball he made shook at first but then became firm. He smiled and let the magic return to him.

"What level would you call this then?" Marco looked over to him and smiled.

"The basics of the crash course guide."

"The basics?"

"My teacher had less time than yours did."

"..I'm sorry Marco."

"Don't be."

"No I am, I cost you your friend. If I had been honest from the start he might be alive."

"Or he might have been the one to jump in front to save me? We can never know what might happen but let me tell you one thing about Dox that you might not know. No one loves themselves less than Dox does. He doesn't care about his own life, only the people around him. So we, Me and Kelly, had to be the ones to fill him with love. Now.. The only other person I have seen with such self-destructive tendencies is the girl you love. She proved it herself, she will sacrifice everything for us so we need to be the ones to protect her. We have to become strong enough and fill her with enough love that we keep her grounded. If you want forgiveness then earn it. Protect the girl you love." Jade looked over at him and nodded. They returned to their silence each now weighing their actions and their emotions on their heart.

 **"Nice pep talk Marco. Feel like your words got through to him... don't you? But I saw something you didn't and this time.. I'm not telling ha ha ha"** Darkco's voice echoed in his mind.

* * *

/

In a cell, not too far from the boys sat Higgs and Kelly. Like the boys they hadn't talked much for most of the week. It was only when feeling Marco's and Jade's magic that the two kicked into life. They stood up and faced where the magic was coming from hoping everything was okay. Both girls pushed their faces against the cold metal bars of the Butterfly Dungeons but neither could see what was happening, they were just left hoping to know what was going on but, then however, the magic receded back to its hosts.

Kelly was the first to sit back on the beds. She slammed her fist against the wall causing it to crack from one side to the other. Higgs watched and sniggered at her behavior. She jumped back onto the bed and turned away from the green haired girl.

"What is your problem with me?" Kelly finally asked. Higgs turned back and faced her.

"My problem? My problem is that you hurt him. The one person you should never hurt is Marco. He gave everything he had to you and because of your own inferiority you broke his heart." Higgs tone was cold and her expression devoid of emotion, no longer even having the energy to be angry at Kelly.

"But that's our problem, my problem. What happens between us shouldn't concern you. Higgs… we fought in a war together, trained together and survived together. We were friends! But you cast me aside in a heartbeat because I made one mistake?" Kelly's voice, unlike Higgs', was packed with raw emotion. Higgs looked close and realized she was crying.

"It's not the quantity of your mistakes but the lack of quality to your actions. You could have asked anyone and they would have told you that Marco loved you and wanted only you? Not because of some co-incidences along the way but because together you built a beautiful life together which you ruined. Marco could have been King if he continued chasing Star and Mewni would have thrived. He could have stayed on Earth with the other girl or possibly even explored the many worlds out there with the runaway twins next door. However, he chose you. He chose to forsake the expected for the one no one else saw but him." Higgs paused, she got up and sat next to Kelly. She pulled Kelly into her arms to sooth her which only confused Kelly more.

"Marco.. He's amazing.. And so are you. You all are. You and all the others don't realize how hard it is to chase after you. Star is leading Mewni to its greatest age, Tom is a demon hybrid from the Underworld, Heckapoo is a demi-goddess of Dimensions. You were like me though. You were just another girl from the rough side of Mewni. I grew up... Lets say in a home not so welcoming. When I was chosen to be a Knight it was as a joke, you wanna know what my parents did? They celebrated. Not out of joy of my potential but out of the happiness of knowing they wouldn't have to care for me. I am a joke, I am weak and I have had to fight my way to be here in this cell with you." Higgs breathed in deep and laid back on the bed. Kelly joined her so they were laying side by side.

"But, even after everything, he accepted me. Without expectation, without judgment and without personal reward. He accepted who I was and believed in me. I never want him to suffer or struggle because if he does how can he keep going? How can he help the next person who needs his naïve touch? Marco has no idea the joy and comfort he brings and he never will. You died. You fought. But you survived to live your life by his side and when the question was asked... You ran. How can I not be angry? How can I not cast you aside? The only good thing to ever happen to me was about to find happiness and you stopped it.. Maybe I'm not being fair but forgive me.. I did get drugged, kidnapped and then saved again by that idiot. I just want you all to be happy.. I want to believe that after everything I've watched you go through, through Dox and the end of Mewni to now I want to believe you have a happy ending waiting for you."

Kelly lay there in thought. She processed all of Higgs' words, almost amazed by the amount in which she had spoken after a week of silence. Kelly knew she had made the wrong choice and regretted ever saying no. She didn't need Marco to nearly die to realize he truly loved her, she had always known it.

"You're right.."

"...Really?" Replied Higgs shocked.

"Yes you are right. I made a mistake bigger than I ever have done. I almost lost everything I hold dear. My future, My Friends.. My Family. I almost lost all of you. You could have died in that place, so could he and Janna did die. I was saved once again because of Dox and I hate it. I'm so angry at myself that I want to smash this place to the ground and scream to the world how sorry I am but it won't fix things. I need to show him and you that I want this. I want all of you. I'm afraid to say you lot are a package deal and I won't be without you. As soon as we get out of here I'm going to beg him to forgive me, hope he will still marry me and start tomorrow in that moment. I want this. I want this more than I've ever wanted anything. It's all I've ever wanted, to be happy." Kelly wrapped her fingers around Higgs' and tightened them.

"Well actions speak louder than words... So hopefully I'll get to see you propose to him soon." She chuckled.

"Yeah! And Higgs, you aren't chasing after us at all, you're running beside us into this crazy new world we're building... Never forget that."

"...Sure thing Greenie! Anyway.. When are we getting out of here?" Higgs asked sitting up.

"Star said she'd try to have us out of here by tomorrow so it's only a little more waiting really."

"..Hmm that still is a long time to wait.. I'm not surprised the other two next door skipped out on day one."

"Let's be honest, what prison in existence could keep Janna and Heckapoo from breaking out? I mean the minute they were left alone they just walked out the front door and up the stairs? They didn't even try to hide the fact they were breaking out."

"I wonder where they are now.."

"I would rather not know.. They looked more focused than I have ever seen them. Even one of them two can wreck havoc when slightly annoyed so can you imagine what two of them pissed off and upset would be capable of?" Kelly asked shuddering.

"... You're right.. I don't want to know." Higgs sighed. They both looked at the opposite wall to them which was for a brief moment the home to Janna and Heckapoo and tried not to wonder what they were up to.

* * *

/

Star put down the phone and banged her head against the table several more times. For the last day she had been receiving call after call about two of her Knights and the trouble they were causing.

The pair had walked into a bar full of the worst and most dangerous people in Mewni and after just an hour walked out leaving all the people inside, most wanted for multiple crimes, beaten and tied up on the ground. They had interrogated them for information and leaving when they got none.

They'd broken into a noble's castle who was holding a secret rendezvous with people in power who wanted to overthrow Star and had stolen all their plans and previous misdeeds before turning them into the press. The fallout the information caused was awful. Riots started happening and people assaulted the nobles homes. Newlywed Monster and Mewman couples were the most hurt by the news given that the nobles described their relationship as "Impure and sinful". Now Star was trying to handle the damage they were causing and trying to stop them before it got any worse. Except she had no idea how. The only people she could trust to get them back were either busy or in prison.

Star picked up the phone and dialled a number. She waited for the other side to pick up.

"Hello Princess.. This is.. Surprising?" Answered the voice. Hearing the voice left Star with goose bumps all over her body. The chill that ran across her made her shudder.

"Yes, I am sorry to call you but I've been left with no choice. I need to call in that favor." She replied with a sigh.

"Interesting. You waited this long, even with Marco missing or the war over Mewni you never tried to receive my aid. Why now?" The voice hissed.

"It's not easy to call a dead person for a favour. Plus bringing you back is more trouble than its worth but currently I'm running out of options. I need help and oddly enough I think you are someone who could do that. Plus you owe me."

"That's true.. I do owe you. When Marco pulled your mother free from the Magic Dimension you went and found me. A puddle of muck, nothing more than the remains of my failures and you could have easily erased my existence but you didn't Princess. You gave me back my form, removing the magic from my body. I was alive once more, your enemy who almost destroyed you and everything you hold dear and you then gave me even more mercy. A portal out, to a place where no one would find me where I could live in peace. I had no need to try to kill you anymore as I knew you and Marco would truly bring peace and fairness to the monsters of Mewni."

"With this we'll be even and we can go our separate ways." Star was trying to block out the memories that the voice was referring to. She remembered drowning, in a dark place where she felt more powerless than she ever had before but she couldn't let it overcome her.

"If that is what you wish, although I have a feeling this isn't going to be the end Princess."

"…that's a risk I'll have to take.."

"Then a gamble it is, now my Princess, what is your request?."

"..Well I need you to find someone for me and then bring them back safely. That is all… Toffee."

* * *

/

Janna pushed her sunglasses back up her nose as the sunlight tried to creep in. She'd happily have waited back at the safe house but Heckapoo insisted that she come along for a ride. She reached forward and gave Nachos a scratch on her neck scales and smiled as the Dragon cycle let out a low growl in response. After easily walking out of the prison cell the girls had been busy. They went to their home in Heckapoo's dimension where they had lived together to gear up. If not for the magic enhancements they had placed on it then it would have turned to rubble in the time they'd been away from it. Janna enjoyed heading home for the first time in a long time. This was a place where they had spent years living free and easy with no fear of losing her mind or the people they love betraying them. It was a safe place. Janna hadn't told Heckapoo but she was experiencing pain where the spear had impaled her. She could still feel it. Still hear the crunching of her ribcage and the popping sensation as it tore through her heart. It felt like she was stuck in a constant state of death and just living it out slowly. Suspended animation, that's how she felt. Part of Janna was scared, as for everything she was forgetting that feeling was becoming clearer and clearer. The other part felt closer to the darkness than she had ever could be.

She looked down at her wrists and the almost non-existent scars. Marco had saved her a long time ago but she hadn't yet forgotten the words Darkco had said to her. That he had pushed her other self to commit suicide and that she could easily have been that girl. Except she was saved.. By Marco, by Star, By Heckapoo and many more. She had a life now and a future she had to protect. Jade was, in the nicest words Janna could think of, an idiot. He would probably get into loads of trouble due to his ignorance of the real world and it's cruelness. Along with everything that had just happened Janna had decided she wasn't going to wait around for anyone to mess with her life or hurt the people she loved again. So she and Heckapoo had left to track down any traces of the so called "Cult of War" that had captured Marco and Higgs.

"You look lost in thought over there Witch?" Janna looked up to see Heckapoo walking back to her. Behind her being dragged while tied up was the info broker they had come to see.

"Yeah, just reminiscing. I take it he didn't take your first offer?" Janna chuckled.

"Yup you got it girl. I asked nicely as well! Nicely yet he wouldn't tell me anything." Heckapoo sighed. The man moaned loudly behind the gag and tried to squirm free.

"Well what can you do Matchstick? Guess we gotta take him for a ride like the others." She smiled widely.

The two girls picked up the man and put him onto Nachos. Large scales grew out and held the man down to the bike. Marco never had bothered but Dragon cycles do come with natural safety features for their riders that stops them from falling off.

"Hey Nachos, give him the super duper special okay girl?" Heckapoo asked the cycle who nodded before running off and taking to the air. Heckapoo turned to see Janna had made some chairs and got popcorn ready. She took her seat and helped herself to the popcorn.

"How long do you think this one will hold out?" Janna asked amused.

"Hmm Id say maybe 3 minutes"

"Really only 3? I think that's being so generous. I bet maybe 1 or 2. He also seems like a screamer."

"Wanna bet?"

"Ooo name your terms Matchstick?"

"If I'm right.. I get to drive for the next three locations and you have to cook dinner!" Heckapoo stated with a smile.

"Mmm I see, I see. In that case if I win we're going to have a proper talk about what happened last week and how you really feel." Heckapoo flinched at the comment before trying to play it off as not having affected her.

"Deal" Heckapoo responded confidently.

Almost as soon as they finished talking they notice a piece of cloth land on the ground in front of them.

"Is that the gag?"

"Yup!" They both looked up and saw Nachos spinning around quickly while falling to the ground before pulling up and flying over them. The mans screaming filled the air as Nachos started doing loop the loops in the air. Both girls quickly pulled out umbrellas as the man threw up from the dragon.

"Really.. Do they all need to do that? I remember the first one when we didn't bring umbrellas to this."

"Please.. Don't remind me.."

"PP-PPLEASE STOP! I'LL TELL YOU EV-EVERYTHING YOU WANNA KNOW!" Cried the man. Janna looked down at the timer she had prepared.

"1 minute and 30 seconds. Looks like I win this time Heckapoo. Guess we're going to have that talk."

"Yeah later, first we have to get the information out of this guy." Heckapoo muttered quickly before moving with haste to meet with Nachos who had landed.

"Good girl" She said as she pushed the man off her. She led the cycle to her food and let her dig in.

"So spill everything!" She said menacingly to the man on the ground.

"My name is Schmitt, 37 and single. Was engaged but she left me for my brother. My mother disowned me as her son and I never knew my father. I lost all my money to gambling debts so started as a snitch for an info broker before working my way up. Eventually I killed my boss and took over but was revolted against so fled out here and acted as a private broker. I had some trouble especially around the times things looked bad in the kingdom. Ludo's take over, Meteora's rampage and then the Terran boy went missing. I decided to head out to the dimension he comes from for a vacation. Nice place, bit primitive in terms of Magic but their science was indeed interesting. However trying to sneak through dimension collapsing rifts is dangerous, don't need to tell you twice of course and yes I know it's illegal. I came back and set up shop again after the whole war with the falling Mewni business. Thing is… something changed after that. The loud and proud freaks went silent… crimes seemed to be more planned and more grand to keep attention drawn. With the rebuilding of the territories and the new Order of Knights it seemed like something was being built. Fast forward to the missing people cases happening in all outskirt villages, the 'random' attacks on people travelling and the missing boy wonder and I knew something was up… like another bad time up so I went and did some digging. I found out that all the low level losers who used to be henchmen and henchwoman, I'm not a sexist after all, were being recruited into some sort of cult. It was like nothing I'd heard of with corruption at the highest level. What I mean by that is not even the Princess' bloodline is free of traitors. It's called the Cult of War-"

"FINALLY! NEXT TIME START WITH THAT!" Janna yelled exhausted. Both girls frowned at the man not really sure if making him talk was the right idea.

"So it really is a big deal…" The mans face fell.

"Yes, which is why we need you to tell us everything?" Heckapoo added. The man nodded. He stood up and shook off the ropes.

"You could get out?" Janna asked amazed.

"Took longer than usual but I pride myself in my ability to escape, you are not the first people who have come for me.." He said confidently. Janna and Heckapoo looked at the wet patch at his crotch and raised their eyebrows.

"…Look.. Just because it happens doesn't mean its not scary. I'm a weak person with few redeeming features. I tried to live the straight life and the Kingdom I grew up in was not as friendly to the weak as it is now. Just come inside, I'll get changed and tell you everything." He started walking away.

"He seems interesting?" Janna looked on confused as the man fell down not realizing his legs had gone numb.

"He is right though. If we learnt anything from travelling its that its easy to fall into the darkness but hard to hold onto the light.."

"Are you talking about when you got angry and decided to start a girl gang?"

"I thought we agreed not to ever talk about that again!?" Heckapoo's angry glare fell on Janna's bemused face.

"Did we?" She asked before skipping into the house. Schmitt was sitting at the table already wearing clean clothes.

"You change quick?"

"Need to, being able to change disguises is useful"

"I get ya now spill the beans"

"That's an Terran phrase? Right you are from Terra, although the natives call it E-arth right? Janna the Witch and Heckapoo of Dimensions, Two of the big players for the side of good."

"Yeah and you really are well informed but it's cool just call her Matchstick"

"Don't." Heckapoo interjected.

"Anyway.. The cult right?"

"Yes the cult.."

"Around a month ago I managed to disguise myself and sneak into a cultist recruitment meeting. It seemed like your run of the mill lame suicide cult on the outside. I'm a frequent person at them as I find those about to die are rather loose lipped. Except it wasn't a suicide cult it was The Cult Of War. They managed to brainwash the newbies with sparklingly words and a rose tinted vision. Apparently people who are seeking death make great cultists."

"So what's there aim? What do they want?" Heckapoo asked.

"It's pretty simple really, War."

"War? Why?"

"It's a bit hard to explain.. The founder of the cult, this.. Apostle lady says that she can hear the voice of God and he is displeased. Mewmans should not dirty their blood with monster kind. They should not live along side them and anyone who seeks this is the enemy of God's will. The lord stated that only through War will the sinners perish and by washing in blood can we become pure. Some twisted sick fantasy I know. They've started kidnapping either monsters or Mewmans who strongly support the equality of Monster kind. They make them fight for survival until they no longer see reason and then will put a friend or someone they love in front of them. The survival driven person would kill their love and with it their attachment to peace. They would have gained a capable murderer who has no tether to the light. They tend to either kidnap people in pairs or aim for couples and families. It's twisted. When I went to leave they refused and tried to force me into their death pit but I used someone else's hesitation to join to escape. After that I kept my ear out and listened for more. Moment word was out that the boy wonder and the lady knight were missing I knew it was them but maybe its because they're being driven insane or just stupid but everyone knows now, do not underestimate the Red Knight." Schmitt sighed deeply glad to finally tell someone this information.

Heckapoo and Janna looked at each other, both realizing that everything suddenly made sense. They didn't target Marco, they were targeting Marco and Higgs together hoping to destroy Marco's mind. Janna face flashed with a dark look as she realized that by her dying she had almost made their wish come true.

"But that's not the worse part.." Schmitt added. He stood up and pulled two sheets of parchment from the cupboard putting them on the table. They were nearly identical symbols. On the right was a triangle painted red, Inside it was a Mewman hand holding up a sword. In the left was almost the same but it was a monster claw.

"The right is the Cult of Wars Mewman Division.. The left.. It's Monster Division."

"But how.. It's designed to kill Monster.."

"Change the word Monster to Mewman and you have your answer. If I'm right I believe the apostle has some form of shapeshifting ability and is using it to lead Mewmans to kill monsters while using Monsters to try to be the oppressors rather than the oppressed. The problem being is that the Princess is speaking all about peace and everyone seems on board.. But what if there was some small revolt by some nobles who were against monster rights.. The Monsters of War would attack these oppressors and in doing so convince the Mewmans of War that monsters need to be killed. If that fight starts no one will be able to trust anymore, it would lead us back to the start with Mewmans and Monsters fighting to kill one another except both sides tasted peace, they knew freedom and will feel the loss so much more. They'll fight harder.. More violently until only death remains." Heckapoo slammed her fist through the table in anger. Janna's face was horrified looking at the images. Whoever this was they were going to spark War that caused death in numbers Mewni had never seen.

"…But it's not too late.." Both girls looked up at him.

".. What do you mean?"

"Well I don't want to die in someone's stupid excuse for a game so I was coming up with a plan and investigating." Schmitt stood up and grabbed a large map putting it down on the table. On it was Mewni and various places were marked with each symbol. Janna noticed the symbol where Marco was held was crossed off.

"These are all the locations of their hideouts and strongholds. They tend to use abandoned buildings and relics of wars prior. For example several Monsters of War locations are in the old monster temples."

"This is brilliant! We can go put a stop to this right now, Call Star and get the army-"

"-NO!" Schmitt yelled over Janna.

"If you do that you will trigger it yourself. You can't fight Mewmans with Monsters or Vice versa. This time people need to take care of their own. It's why this plan is possible. The Princess restored Monsters to their own rule, by doing so we can now have a united monster front. Send this to fight the Monsters and the Mewman army to fight the Mewmans. By doing so you will rid yourselves of their twisted prejudice and ensure that people fight for their own freedoms." Both girls were surprised at him. He'd clearly given this a lot of thought.

"What were you going to do with these plans?" Heckapoo asked all of a sudden.

"Ermm"

"What do you mean Matchstick? Obviously he'd give them to us?"

"Now he will.. But before we came here he was sitting on this information knowing exactly what had happened and what was going to happen. How were you going to give this to anyone hiding out here?"

"You got me?" He said with a weak smile.

"Talk!"

"I'd planned to send copies to every kingdom of Mewni, in fact I already did but odds are my letters were thrown away. Not taken seriously in this time of peace.."

"So what were you planning?"

"Well.. I just needed someone to take notice close to the Princess right.."

"But they're not easy to get to are they.."

"No.. I needed someone whose family wasn't capable of killing me before I could speak.. Someone who could cause the heroes to come running.."

"Your family is hidden Janna because of the protective spells placed over your house… but Marco's isn't. Not only that his address is common knowledge to a lot of people thanks to Ludo and his goons.." Janna looked at Heckapoo and then at Schmitt she waved her hand and he went flying into the wall, now pinned to it.

"You were going after Marco's family!"

"No! I didn't intend to hurt them! I just needed their help!" Schmitt pleaded.

"You swear! And I will check! If you have lied to me death will not be your concern but your only salvation!" Janna screamed at him. She grabbed her scissors and cut a hole into Marco's home. Alessandro came flying straight into her giggling. He had learnt from Tom how to control his flying a little better and now could land when he was asked. Marco's mum and dad were asleep on the sofa, beside them was his cot with the magic sealing bracelet. Janna put him down, reequipping him with the bracelet before casting a light sleep spell on him.

Returning from the portal she found Schmitt looking terrified.

"You are in luck. They're completely fine however if I hear they have even got a paper cut I will come for you!" Janna threatened.

"I promise I won't ever!" He immediately replied.

"Good.. Now be a good boy and go deliver this to Star"

"Me? I would never be allowed to see the Princess!"

"Sure you will, just say you have an update on us and sure enough you'll meet her. Trust me."

"Okay.. I'll go now.." Schmitt got all his things off the table and packed them up. He grabbed his coat and went to walk out the door when a portal appeared below him and he vanished into it.

"Where did you send him?"

"Star's office"

"He'll be lucky if he isn't killed straight out!"

"Nahh, my portals are the only green and red ones I've ever seen plus it's warded so only allowed people can open portals there. She'll know it's a gift from us."

"Let's hope so?"

* * *

/

At that moment.

Schmitt fell through the ceiling landing in a chair in front of Star. She looked at the portal as it closed and then at the terrified looking man in front of her.

"…Okay… what did they do this time?" Star asked with a sigh. Hoping they hadn't cause the man too much trouble.

* * *

/

"Did you see the map?"

"You mean the fact that one of those cult bases is only a little north of here?"

"Exactly! You thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Let's go pay then a visit?"

"Precisely!" Both girls ran outside with Janna jumping on Nachos first and revving loudly. They took to the air watching the landscape blur around them. She saw the ruins first in front of her and leant right falling off. Heckapoo followed and both girls hurtled to the ruins at great speed, both laughing loudly. Janna began to chant spells into her fist until the sheer volume of magic caused it to glow so bright it was blinding she pointed her fist in front and put her other hand on her hip pretending to be Supergirl. Heckapoo on the other hand was creating a load of clones that each started to summon fire balls. As they got closer the Heckapoos let loose their attack raining hundreds of fireballs down on the building. Janna's fist collided with the ruins as her fist cut through it like a hot knife through butter. She crashed into the ground causing a massive explosion but walking away unharmed. Heckapoo landed beside her and both looked around at the many people staring back at them. Faces covered by masks and wearing the Cult of Wars symbol.

"Seems like we came to the right place!" Janna laughed as one man rushed forward to hit her. She ducked and then kneed him in the balls. As he staggered in pain she used the magic left in her fist to send him flying back through the roof.

"You're definitely right there!" Heckapoo cut a load of portals and let her clones jump through. All around the room her clones began to fight and beat the cultists. Some were taken care of but by using the clones to take out the weaker opponents they had established which enemies would be worth the fight.

"So we gonna talk about you and Dox then?" Asked Janna as she jumped into the air and kicked one cultist in the face. She staggered back with her mask cracked. Before she managed to recover Janna followed it up with a clean hit to the gut rendering her unable to fight. Two more people rushed her so she summoned some vines from the ground that grabbed the people and began to smash them into the walls.

"Is this really the time or place?" Heckapoo ducked as someone tried to slash her with a sword. She rushed forward and disarmed him before conking him on the head with the hilt. She parried another attack before taking him out by tripping his legs. A move Marco taught her well.

"Well yes! You can't run away or avoid it here! I won that bet so get talking matchstick!" Janna used her vines to throw the unconscious people at the new group of enemies that had tried to rush in the room. She then fired beams of ice freezing them solid.

"Fine! What exactly do you want me to say?" Heckapoo fired a beam of fire at the frozen block of people which melted enough to send the block hurtling down the stairs to the dungeon. From the gasps, screams of pain and the big thud it seemed many people were caught up in the fall.

"I want you to be completely honest with me! What do you want!" Janna used a ball of air to blow herself back from the crowd who had appeared from the other door. Heckapoo grabbed her hand, swung her and then threw her back. Lightning started to spark off of Janna's foot as she went flying into the new group completely electrocuting them.

"It doesn't matter what I want? I can't have what I want?" Heckapoo used the momentum from spinning Janna to punch through someone's mask. The cracking sound it made clearly was a mix of the mask breaking and bone. She cut some more portals and punched into each of them. Around them fists suddenly punched all the enemies who were waiting for a chance to attack them.

"Tell me NOW!" Janna yelled. She thrust her hands into the ground and vines erupted out hitting each and every dazed person and sending them through the walls. Janna turned to Heckapoo as they now stood alone in the crumbling building. The walls all fell down leaving them both in the open.

"I want him back I want him to live!"

"I knew it!" Janna cheered as the ground opened up and they both were caught by surprise. They landed with a thud feeling the full weight of the fall. Janna and Heckapoo both looked around and sighed, they knew exactly where they were. The death circle.

Darts shot out and hit both girls. They felt woozy but took them out quickly.

"It'll take more than that to take me down!" Janna raised her hands to fire magic at all the watching cultists but her magic blew up in her hands. She was thrown into the wall. She stood up quick, realizing she only took damage from the hit to the wall.

"Well shit."

 **"Welcome Daughters of Fate! We were expecting you! Our Apostle told us you would be coming!"**

"She was watching us?" Heckapoo whispered to Janna.

"Seems like it" Janna retorted looking around for the speaker.

 **"We welcome you to our cleansing circle, here you will be freed of your sins. Janna, Child of Terra, although your blood too is impure you can earn the favor of God, strike down the monster beside you and join the fight for a better world."** From above a sword landed next to Janna. She picked it up and looked at Heckapoo before laughing.

"You're kidding right? Why would I listen to you morons?" Janna laughed at them again which resulted in angry jeers from the audience.

 **"Silence! Janna, Child of Terra, you have rejected the good will of God and as such you must too be purged of your sins. Death is your only salvation. May it be when you meet the father of all that he forgives your betrayal."** Someone clapped their hands twice and the door opened. Beside them a giant monster walked in. His eyes had been gouged out and his mouth sewn up. His fists were clenched and spiked poles had been put through them. They had clearly been there a while as the wounds had fused to the poles.

"What the fuck have they done to you!" Janna gasped. The monster swung his large hands forcing both girls to jump back. Janna ran forward and sung the sword at it hoping for anything to happen but the sword shattered.

"Got any ideas?" Janna asked quickly.

"Nope you?"

"Not a single one! Looks like you'll be seeing Dox a lot sooner than we thought.. Silver lining and all."

"We can't give up yet. Here!" Heckapoo threw Janna one side of her scissors which grew larger into a sword.

"If we're going to die… we die fighting!" The monster swung its fist down on them and they both held their swords up to block it. It took both of them but they managed to hold back the blow, however both felt their knees almost give way and realised that blocking was not a strong strategy if they wanted to live. The monster sung both fists together and they both dodged. Janna to the left and Heckapoo to the right. They grabbed onto the metal poles and ride the monsters fists up. They both jump at the same time, bringing their swords down into the monsters skull. Letting go they both dropped to the floor and stood opposite from it as it remained still.

"We did it?" Heckapoo asked prematurely as the monster let out another large moan. The attack had failed to kill the monster instead had angered it. The monster thrashed around before raising its fists to crush the girls.

"Well.. We tried." Janna said grabbing Heckapoo and pulling her in close.

"That we did." Heckapoo returned her embrace and closed her eyes. Waiting for the end.

"Not. Hard. Enough." Came a snarl from behind the monster. The monster froze, his face scrunched up in pain before clawing at its throat and falling to the ground. Riding its neck stood a lizard man in a suit. He wiped the blood off his claw with a cloth and then threw it away.

"You see with these sort of beasts its better to just crush their windpipe. If it can't breath it will die. Anyway, I'm glad I found you so quickly, the Princess' tip off about this place turned out to be surprisingly accurate. It's almost a waste to use the favor this way." His face lit up with his jagged smile. He looked up at the audience who were all readying weapons and magic to fight against him.

"Oh this should be fun." He cracked his knuckles before using the downed monster as a ladder to walk into the viewing area. Some darts came flying into him but he merely flicked them away as if they were flies. The first few people rushed towards him were the most unfortunate. The first two, like the monster below, found a claw wrapped around their neck and proceed to snap them. The third gentleman had his heart torn out. The rest all stabbed and impaled him with various weapons forcing him to drop to his knees motionless.

"Take that you sick monst-" One man tried to say when a tail wrapped around his neck and snapped it. The cultists turned back to the body of the lizard see it gone. Suddenly screams of pain began to erupt from the group as people were dying by their own weapon. It didn't take long before only one man remained. He held his sword as it shook in his hand.

 **"Stay away.. Monster.. God will save me as I have been a loyal son to his mission!"**

"Well.. Let's see your God save you now!" Came a voice from behind him. He looked down to see a sword coming through his chest. He dropped to his knees and tried to turn to his attacker when a quick slash caused his head to drop to the floor. The lizard man flicked off all the blood and began to wipe his hands again heading back to the two girls. By now the magic poison had set in and both were on their knees unable to escape the looming threat.

"No need to pray? I'm no god after all" he stated again with another toothy grin.

"Toffee. How are you even alive?" Heckapoo spat at him. Her blood ran cold as every survival instinct inside her was telling her to run. She felt ashamed that she wanted to run but she couldn't fight the fear inside her.

"Well you have your darling Princess Star to thank for that, she found me and offered me Mercy. I merely came here to repay that favor by bringing you back to her. Which frankly you've made incredibly easy for me!"

"You liar! Why would Star spare you! You are nothing but a murderer!" Heckapoo yelled at him. He leant forward and held her face in his claw. She tried to pull herself free but couldn't.

"What does the opinion of one weak little demi-god mean to me? You lost to me! You lost to Meteora! And you basically lost to the Dark Marco too? So tell me, what does the opinion of a loser like you really matter?" He snarled at her.

"So what if I lost. So what if I'm a loser. You lost too, to a little girl and a stupid bird. Maybe that's your weakness!" She retorted. He tightened his grip on her cheek and lifted her off the ground.

"Now now.. I could always say that I was too late.. That I couldn't save the foolish little wenches that ran head first into an obvious trap.. Don't tempt me I will make your life he-Ouch!" Yelled out Toffee. He looked down and saw that Janna had fallen over and somehow crawled to his tail and was now biting it with all her strength.

He shook her off and dropped Heckapoo.

"Interesting, the same ferocity that Marco showed when he punched out my heart. I don't dislike it. As much as I love to leave you here I have a deal to keep so up we go." Toffee leant down and picked up both girls putting them over his shoulder. He walked out of the building as both squirmed to get free. He cut open a portal when outside and appeared in front of Star before dropping both girls to the floor.

"Your missing Knights Princess." Toffee nodded to her and then vanished back through the portal.

Star shuddered seeing the lizard but got up and helped Janna and Heckapoo into chairs. She then gave them the remedy Marco had made to cure the magic toxin. It would take a little while to work so she sat down at her desk to see the dark glare Heckapoo was giving her.

"Toffee!?" Heckapoo spat out.

"I had hoped Id never actually need his help but I didn't have a lot of options. You two were running around leaving messes in your wake and I needed you to stop."

"I don't care about that! Why did you save him! Why is he even alive! He should be dead!"

"I found him, or what was left of him in the magic dimension. I brought him back to a physical form and set him free. He no longer needs to kill us and I don't want to fight him anymore so we went our separate ways however he told me he owes me so if I never need help no matter what I can call on him… like I said I didn't think I'd ever need to." Star sighed heavily, Janna and Heckapoo still couldn't move however so remained with their eyes on her.

"How could you… people died to stop that vile excuse for a monster. People we both knew and loved. You almost died, your mother almost died and Marco almost died. Did you think about how he'll feel? How any of us would? Marco punched him through the heart because he thought you were dead and beyond saving. He gave into grief and anger in possibly one of his darkest moments and you let him go?.. You've made some pretty stupid decisions Star Butterfly but nothing before even begins to hold a candle to this." Heckapoo's voice was cold and hoarse, full of hate and the intent to inflict as much pain as she was feeling inside.

Star looked away to hide her tears, she had mixed feelings about sparing Toffee but had always hoped when the time came her friends would understand her desire for peace. Toffee had lost even at his strongest, he had failed everything he had spent decades planning and was done with it all. He wanted nothing more to do with it or them. Monster and Mewman peace was attainable thanks to Star, not in spite of her like he had believed so he left the future to the ones who would rule it.

She wiped her tears and looked at Heckapoo, her bloodshot eyes showing just how hurt and how tired the Princess truly felt.

"Heckapoo.. Hate me all you want I don't really care.. At the end of the day if I hadn't spared him you two would be dead… and I don't think I could cope losing you both.. I doubt Id even be able to process it. Janna, you died.. Out of my sight and reach and if that happened again I don't know what Id do.." Star sobbed lightly, Guilt flushed Heckapoo's body like the cold of winter nips at your skin. Janna, however, didn't reply or even acknowledge the conversation.

"Janna?" Star asked.

"…Janna? What's wrong?" Star asked again. Heckapoo turned to see Janna and realized, now that her anger had temporarily subsided, that her eyes were glazed over and she wasn't blinking. Star rushed over and shook her.

"Janna.. Speak to me.." Star begged, her mind still lingering on the thoughts of loss. Janna blinked and looked at Star. She looked down at her hands and over to Heckapoo before back at Star.

"Ermm.. I'm sorry miss but who are you? And where am I?" Janna questioned. Her voice was softer than usual, missing her mischievous tone. Star froze, she had no idea what to do. Looking over at Heckapoo she could see that she knew something but her face mirrored Star's.

"What are you saying? It's me… Star?"

"…"

"We're best friends? Star Butterfly Princess of Mewni?"

"…"

"Janna speak to me.."

"I don't know who you are lady but if you don't let me go I'm going to use my psychic powers to call my ninja friend. He knows martial arts and will kick your butt!" Janna threatened. Star's face grew wide with disbelief as she remembered a secret Marco had once told her.

"There was this really brief phase Janna went through where she was convinced she was a psychic and could summon me. I felt bad for her as she had a rough time around that time so I just use to follow her around and help her out whenever she scrunched up her face to summon me. It worked for a few days but she got into a fight with some of the older kids while I was stuck cleaning the class after school. They… didn't exactly hurt her but whatever they said to her she lost it. Kicked all their butts without my help and from then on she never relied on me again.. I guess she realized I couldn't come every time she needed help."

"Janna.. Is your ninja friend Marco Diaz?" Star asked trying to test her theory. Janna's face lit up red as she blushed.

"What.. No.. Who would rely on that dork.." She mumbled out, fooling no one.

"Well I know where Marco is.. How about we go see him.. And see if he can help you?"

"Meh if I have to" Janna shrugged whilst trying to hide her smile. Star went to help Janna up when Heckapoo grabbed her hand to stop her. She had regained a little movement and dove out of the chair to stop Star.

"Please. Don't… don't let anyone see her like this or even tell them about it!"

"Why? Has this happened before? What are you hiding?" Star quizzed back while Janna watched on amused at the near adult girls arguing.

"…yes.. It's what caused her death.."

"Then why are you keeping it a secret!"

"BECAUSE ITS WHAT SHE WANTED! OKAY!" Heckapoo yelled back angrily, only she wasn't only angry, she was hurt and upset. Afraid to think this could be the end of her friend.

"Tell me everything… and don't miss anything out." Star asked settling back into her seat. She cast a sleep spell on Janna and then locked her eyes on Heckapoo, waiting for the truth.

* * *

/

 **"Age."**

 **"The answer is Age."**

 **"Dumbco! The answer is Age!"**

"Got an answer yet?" Jade asked bemused. Marco's face scrunched up again.

"Say it one more time..?"

"Okay but this is the last chance. What goes up and doesn't come back down? And no its not air, heat, petrol prices or Janna's evilness" Jade laughed hardly as he listed back Marco's guesses.

 **"It's age for crying out loud!"**

"I'm gonna guess.. CO2 levels!?" Marco guessed confidently.

"Dude I don't even know what that is.. The answer is age!" Jade laughed again.

 **"Told you."**

 _"Shut up."_

"Dang it, It's so obvious now you say it!" Marco laughed along. They had grown bored of recounting stories and decided to take a break from magic practice to tell each other riddles.

"Yeah its always the way, you're turn now Marco"

"Hmm I don't have anymore I'm afraid what about you?"

"Nahh that was bottom of the barrel for me too"

"I have one, What looks like a disappointment?, Talks like a disappointment? And Walks like a disappointment?" Came a voice from the shadows. Marco froze as he recognized it. He clenched his fist in anger and tried to spot the voices owner. Jade, on the other hand, was seriously trying to answer the riddles.

"Wouldn't that just be.. A disappointment?" He asked back.

"Exactly.. Now why exactly are you turning out to be this kingdoms biggest disappointment Marco when Ludo is still alive?" Hissed the voice again.

"Stop hiding and face me." Marco gritted his teeth as he replied. Toffee walked forward, his big toothy grin wide on display, triggered by the hostility that Marco showed him.

"Greetings Marco Diaz and… You are?" Toffee asked Jade.

"Vu Jade Agape, and who are you?"

"To see innocent love again? Or Love never seen before? And my name is Toffee, just that will do. I'm an old acquaintance of Mr Diaz." Toffee so factually responded.

"Close enough, you're well versed in Human languages to be able to get that so quickly and its nice to mee-"

"No Jade. It's not. And you. How are you not dead? Last time I saw you.. You melted into nothing and was crushed by a pillar." Marco spat coldly.

"Thank you Mr. Agape, pleasure to meet you too. Marco, always straight to the point with you. You see after my failure to make my plan a reality I was left as you remember a black puddle of muck crushed due to that sad excuse of a bird. Somehow, for reasons unknown to me, I was swallowed back into the magic dimension and stayed there until a fateful day where you happened to rescue Moon from the dimension. Star was wandering around feeling guilty that she hadn't been the one to do it. She found me there, realized what I was and returned my form. I was informed of everything that had occurred from your joke of a squire-ship to Meteora's near victory. I decided to take an absence from the conflict since my adversaries had grown stronger and in number, plus with Eclipsa back on the scene and you sticking around I saw it as my intervention was unnecessary. So I promised to stay away and swore that if the Princess ever needed my aid I would come." Marco sat silently processing what he was saying before replying. He wanted to lash out and call him a liar, a creep and every name under the sun but Marco had grown beyond that.

"Assuming all that to be true… why would Star need your help?"

"Well you see, while you are in here recuperating from being kidnapped, again. Seriously beating a dead horse with that routine aren't we? Your two friends, Ladies Janna and Heckapoo, managed to find the cult of War that targeted you and decided to try storming their stronghold single handedly. Unsurprisingly they fell into a trap and were about to meet their end, when on orders from the Princess to bring them back safely, I arrived in time to save them. They are currently in a meeting with the Princess as we speak."

"…why are you here then? You repaid your debt. You should be gone by now?" Marco questioned further.

"Well aside from wanting to see how far you'd fallen I wanted to offer you my aide."

"….What?"

"I'm here to help. I can see, pardon the pun, that you are having an issue with your eye. I am here to help you with that."

"Why would you help me? What could you even do to help me?" Marco went to move his hand to his eye but stopped himself. He didn't want Toffee or Jade to see the extent that the wound was bothering him.

"Well Mr. Diaz, I happen to have stayed well informed of the activities of this Kingdom. While I promised to not involve myself again, had you or the Princess strayed from the path you swore to walk then I would have not hesitated to break my deal and ensure that someone walks the path to what needs to be done. You see it never hurts to have a plan. I have many. For one, I was paying attention greatly to your medical research, although you have had to put it on hold, you have taken medicine into the future in regards of what Mewmans would have achieved. By combining Medicine and Magic you created something new, something impressive. Yet it can't cure your eye?" Toffee asked him directly. Jade's head span fast to see Marco's troubled expression. Everyone had thought that Marco hadn't yet tried to heal his eye, not that he had tried but failed.

"It didn't work.. To regain my sight I'd either have to remove it completely and work on cloning which is illegal on both Earth and Mewni. The only option would be to try to regenerate it. However it's not possible with magic due to the damage caused by magic. If i put more magic into it I'll lose it forever and human medicine is no where near capable of that."

"Exactly, however, what if you had something to work from? DNA? A test subject? Something that had an innate ability to regenerate itself nearly endlessly?"

"Well.. If i had that I might be able to isolate the gene that triggers it and see if it's possible to copy the ability if only briefly but where am I going to find... You?" Marco's face lit up with disgust at the suggestion.

"No need to show your feelings that clearly Marco. I am the perfect subject for your tests and the only solution to your vision problem, that's clear to see, pardon the pun again."

"Why would you help me?"

"Because I like you Marco. You started this journey as nothing but a safe choice for the Princess, someone who would never be where the trouble was at. Now you are the people's hero, where there is trouble you are sure to find the Red Knight. You are no longer a weak powerless victim however you are still being used as the Princess' weakness. You are a human who defeated a whole dimension, who stopped wars and fought in them. I can hardly even bear to think that I could easily have crushed you in the past given how much you have grown. But still you disappoint, I want to see you reach the potential that everyone believes you can. If this was a story then this would be the beginning of you, the hero, rising back to the top greater than you ever have."

"That didn't answer my question."

"Just call it a hobby, retirement is okay but I've grown rather bored of doing nothing so lets get this started."

"So you'll help me.. Just like that?"

"Ahh.. Well there is one little condition.."

"I thought so, out with it!"

"You have to beat me first." Toffee snapped his fingers and a portal appeared both behind him and inside the cell. He walked through his and Marco turned to follow suit when Jade grabbed him.

"I'm coming with you." Jade stated sternly.

"No it's fine, you stay here and let the others know what happened." Marco tried to leave again but Jade didn't let go.

"That wasn't a request Marco. I'm coming with you, you are not ready to fight yet and he never did say you couldn't get help so I'm coming. Let's go." Marco was about to refuse but paused and smiled.

"Janna's a lucky girl." He said with a smile making Jade blush. Both guys turned to the portal and walked through.

* * *

/

Star sat staring at Heckapoo in silence. She had told her everything about Janna's memory loss including the fact that there was less than a year left before it was beyond reversing. That they had hidden it from everyone and it had consequences.

"How stupid are you that you think you could hide this from us and it'd all work out okay?" Star asked, the only time Heckapoo had heard her talk that cruelly was when she had regained her true power and had kept the MHC captive for a day.

"I didn't... But i was respecting her wishes. She wanted to hide it as she wanted to watch you all achieve your dreams happily without holding you back.."

"Did you tell her how stupid that was?"

"Of course I did! I told her time and time again, we argued about it constantly! Why do you think we didn't speak for weeks. I was always on her case about fixing this but she didn't listen, she never does. You've known her far longer than I have and your friendship is meant to mean more but you never noticed. No one did. She was able to hide it from you all because that's who she is. Janna, the girl who hides her true feelings behind her tough girl act."

"...I'm sorry.."

"Why are you sorry..?"

"Because you've been carrying this burden alone. You are right, we didn't notice. We were all so focused on the problems we'd have to face tomorrow that we weren't seeing the ones of today but now we have we can't ignore it. We can't pretend it's not there. We have to tell the others. They have to know so they can help. She doesn't want to hold us back? What is that about? We are friends. She has helped carry our asses through a war, to support us and be there for us whenever we needed her and even times we didn't know we did."

"But that's not what she wants-"

"No but it's what she needs! She doesn't need to push us all away, she doesn't need to hide her pain she needs us to protect her, to help her and cherish her. Heckapoo.. She needs us to be the ones to show her the way." Heckapoo knew that what Star was saying was true but if she accepted it, it would mean that up until now she had been letting Janna down and she didn't want to face that. She didn't want to be the reason she lost her friend.

"But if we do this... She will hate us for it..."

"Then she can hate us because she will remember that she hates us. Let her hold onto that hate forever. Never forgetting why she hates us... Because we love her so much we ignored what she wanted." Star stood up and walked over to Heckapoo, she pulled her into a hug and let the girl cry. Star knew from experience what it was like to make a choice that you thought would protect someone but it only ended up hurting them.

"So what's your plan.." Heckapoo managed to ask.

"...If I'm right she is stuck in the mind of herself at 8 year old self. Before things got really bad for her that she would hurt herself. She use to pretend that she was psychic and that she could summon her ninja to protect her. It was Marco, who would follow her around to protect her or help her. Right now she needs him to help her and maybe seeing him now might jog her memory."

"What if it doesn't work?"

"Then we try and try again. We do what we can to help her.." Heckapoo nodded at her, Star turned to the sleeping Janna and tapped her lightly on the head with her wand. She shot up and held her hands up poised to fight.

"Whoa easy girl, it's me again, Princess Star. I'm going to help you find your ninja remember?" Star said to the confused girl.

"Oh.. Yeah.. Wait I can move again?"

"Yeah, you were stung by a strange bee and it stopped you from moving. It did the same thing to the demon lady next to you!" Star said enthusiastically. She winked at Heckapoo who frowned. Janna looked over and saw Heckapoo for the first time. Her face lit up into a big smile with eyes of wonder.

"...You're a real demon? They really are real? I knew it! I always knew it! I told all the other kids that they were real and the only one who believed me was Marco! I always knew this day would come that I would meet a real demon and we'd be friends!" Janna talked quickly with excitement.

"..You want to be friends with a demon?" Heckapoo asked Janna confused.

"Yes, of course... Don't you want to be friends with a human?"

"I want nothing more.. So do you want to be my friend Janna?"

"YES! YES I DO! Now what's your name!?" She asked happily.

"My name is Lady Heckapoo of Dimensions."

"WOW! That's like such a cool name... So you can control dimensions?"

"More like, I make scissors that can cut a portal into another dimensions, like this." Heckapoo leant forward and cut open a portal. Janna looked at it in awe before rushing forward and sticking her head in. Star quickly pulled her back out but when she did Janna's hair was standing on ends like she had seen a ghost.

"Amazing! It was a land of clouds and there was lightning just walking by. WALKING! BY! Can you believe it!" Janna spoke with such speed that the others could barley keep up but Heckapoo smiled, she had never seen Janna with such awe and passion in her eyes. This was Janna before the bad set in, before the hurt and suffering she went through. Heckapoo felt guilty for liking Janna's innocence.

"It's really cool... But can we go find Marco now.. I think it'd be cool to show him too?" Janna asked meekly to the pair.

"Sure thing Janna, why don't you hold your new friends hands so you don't get lost?" Star asked with a smile. Janna stood up and wrapped her fingers around Heckapoo's, she then reached over and did the same to Stars.

"I think Princess' are pretty cool too.. Especially magical ones.. But don't tell Marco... He'll think I'm girly."

"Sure thing.." Star answered back weakly.

The three girls left the office and headed through the castle. Janna deciding she wanted to run or skip at random moments. Heckapoo decided to use her scissors to cut portals through the castle that Janna loved jumping through. Not wanting to be outdone, Star used her wand to make Cloudy appear who carried them through the halls. The girls laughter could be heard throughout the castle. The staff all smiled, having missed the sounds of joy for the last few weeks. Star might not have known but her cheerfulness was infectious and the staff loved it.

Popping out of one more portal, the girls jumped off of Cloudy and slid across the dungeon floor. The three tumbled into a pile laughing loudly.

"That was fun! You guys are so amazing! I can't wait to tell everyone that I became friends with a magical princess and a demon lady in one day!"

"Actually Janna, you know the demon lady is a bit cooler than that... She's also part Goddess... So she's a Demi-Goddess" Star added with a smile as Janna's jaw dropped.

"HOW CAN YOU BE SO AWESOME!" Janna yelled out happily, cheering loudly into the air.

"Hello?" Came a voice from down the room. The three walked down to see Higgs and Kelly looking at them confused.

"Hello! My name is Janna! Are you bad people? Why are you in prison?" She asked the two girls who looked at Star and Heckapoo they both tried to indicate to play along. Kelly was quicker to pick up on the message.

"Hi Janna, my name is Kelly and this is Higgs. We aren't bad people we were just mean to each other so the Princess put us in the naughty spot but we're good now so she's here to let us out?" Kelly tried her best to keep up the façade. Janna turned to Star expectantly.

"Exactly. Since they've been good we're definitely going to let them out. They are actually good friends of ours, maybe they'll be your friend too?" Star said happily to Janna while letting the other two out. Janna's face lit up with a smile but she quickly ran over to Heckapoo and pulled her to the side.

 _"...What if they don't like me though?"_ Janna whispered to Heckapoo.

 _"Why wouldn't they like you?"_ Heckapoo asked back.

 _"Well... They're really pretty and.. I'm just me.. No one likes me.."_

 _"Well I like you? And so does Star. You said we were cool right? Well they're really cool too. Just give them a chance and you'll see."_

 _"Hmm... Okay! I will!"_ Janna answered. She skipped over to Kelly and Higgs and held out her hand.

"Hi! I'm Janna, will you be my friends?" While Janna was talking to Heckapoo, Star quickly told the others that she was losing her memory and was stuck in her 8 year olds self. She promised to fill them in later but asked them to roll with it.

"Hi Janna, I'm Higgs nice to meet you."

"And as I said, My name is Kelly it really is cool to meet you, yeah we'll be your friends." They replied. Janna jumped up in excitement before remembering something.

"Do you guys have cool powers too! Like Star and H-poo!" All the others stifled laughs at Janna giving Heckapoo the same nickname Marco did.

"We sure do, mine's mainly based on swords though as I am a Knight for this kingdom."

"You're a knight! That's so cool! What powers do you have!" Janna asked ecstatically. Higgs smiled widely and then started to concentrate magic in her hands. She then waved her hand over her face and body. Around her the magic began to swirl before forming a suit of armor over her. She reached at her hip presumably at nothing before pulling a sword from the magic swell. She then clicked her fingers and all the magic disappeared. Janna's eyes lit up again.

"...Oh my god! You are awesome! Can you do that to me!" Higgs laughed and then waved her hand over Janna making a witch outfit appear on Janna with a magic wand that shot out sparks.

"SOOOOO COOOOLLLLL how did you know I wanted to be a witch?"

"...Because I'm psychic..." Higgs lied poorly.

"ME TOO!" Janna replied happily.

"What can you do?" Janna quickly asked Kelly.

"Well like the others we all have many skills and powers but if you wanna see the coolest one... I have a pocket dimension inside my hair.. So if you climb in you will be inside a different space."

"No way..."

"Yes way!" Kelly knelt down and turned away from Janna. She was hesitant to climb in when Higgs picked her up and put her into Kelly's hair before joining her in there. Janna looked around shocked. She ran around crazily trying to see everything at once before running back to Higgs.

"This is so cool, you could have a secret base inside your own head and no one would ever know!" Janna laughed happily. Higgs picked her back up and took her back out of Kelly. They landed back in the dungeon with Janna wearing a bigger smile than they've ever seen her wear.

"Well Janna, are you ready to see Marco now?" Star asked.

"YEAH! Has he been bad too? Because Marco is never bad?" Janna quizzed confused.

"No, no, He is staying with someone who was very naughty because he didn't want him to feel alone.." Heckapoo quickly jotted in. The others nodded their heads in approval at her quick lie.

"That makes sense! Marco's like the goodest kid around. I sometimes try to make him misbehave with me and he tries… but he can't do it." Janna laughed at her own memories of Marco.

The group walked over to the cell that was suppose to contain Marco and Jade. The cells light was out so Heckapoo made a fireball appear to give some light which amused Janna.

"Just a thought… why didn't the boys stick there heads out when they heard all the noise?" Higgs asked as they shone the light into the cell.

"Because they're not here anymore" Kelly said before swearing loudly. Heckapoo quickly covered Janna's ears.

"Where could they have gone? Did you not hear anything?" Star asked the girls.

"They were practicing channeling their magic yesterday and earlier today when they took a break. I heard Jade asking some riddles that were so easy but Marco is really bad with obvious riddles."

"Right.. He never remembers the answers so you can keep asking the same ones" Janna laughed to herself again.

"And then?" Star asked concerned.

"And then they went quiet, we just assumed they went back to sleep or something waiting it out.."

"How long ago?"

"An hour, maybe two at a stretch why? What do you think might have happened?" Higgs asked. Star froze not wanting to say what she had thought.

"Toffee." Heckapoo gritted through her teeth.

"Toffee's dead, Star saw to that.." Higgs laughed it off before noticing their expressions.

"Right?"

"Not exactly… I think we need to catch up now rather than later…" Star said while sighing loudly.

"So where's Marco?" Janna asked suddenly.

"Ermm… he's just running an errand for someone and will be back later… how about we go get cake and you can eat it in my magic house?" Kelly asked with a smile. Janna's face lit up again she grabbed Kelly's hand and exclaimed "Lead the way".

The others watched on worried about Marco and also slightly jealous. They were solemn invited into the Parahouse and it seemed that being allowed in that easy was unfair. Heckapoo helped build it, Star used to visit it in ghost form and Higgs pop in once but all three really wanted to go in properly.

"Well then let's go!" Kelly said while pulling a key out and turning it in midair, a door appeared revealing the Parahouse.

* * *

/

Marco grabbed at his ribs as he struggled to breath, the last hit doing more damage than he expected. He rolled quickly to avoid a follow up when he felt his body grow lighter and breathing eased. He looked up to see Jade casting a healing spell while firing blue lightning down upon Toffee.

"Dual opposing magic? That's impressive!" Marco exclaimed. Unfortunately the compliment was enough to distract Jade as he turned to say thank you the lizard reached forward and grabbed his wrist before throwing him to the ground beside Marco.

"Ouch… why is this dude so strong?" Jade moaned. Marco cast a spell on him to reduce the pain before the pain stood up to face the lizard. He straightened his tie and smiled at the pair.

"You two are magic users, quite dependent too whereas I trained to fight against such users, an anti-magic unit. My flesh and scales can withstand your magic and I have the speed, strength and reflexes to deal with you while you are trying to cast your spells. Against someone whose scared to be approached, afraid to use his full magical powers and someone so lacking in any real experience Id hardly call you two a threat when in reality each of you alone should be able to kill me without a second thought."

"Trust me! I'm trying! And forgive me for not picking a fight every time I see a person we cant all be personality lacking douche bags like you!" Jade retorted angrily.

"Look Marco, I think he might just make a little bubble of light like you and the Princess yet. Keep trying baby blue and maybe you might just land a hit." Jade face flushed with anger and he went to attack again when Marco stopped him.

"If you give into your anger he will always win without even needing to try. Channel that anger into your strength. Did your Goddess teach you any Martial arts?" Marco said calmly.

"Sort of, it's a hand to hand combat that you use magic to reinforce. It's for when gods would fight other gods?" Jade replied.

"Good.. We are going to need it. We're doing this old school." Marco readied a stance and held his hands up, prepared to fight. Jade did the same except his hands and feet were surrounded by a blue flame.

"Interesting. I will take that challenge Mr. Diaz." Toffee took his blazer off, loosened his tie and rolled up his sleeves before taking his own pose.

"Come at me little red and baby blue. I'm ready when you are" Toffee said with a big smile on his face.

 **A/N: Hope you enjoyed it :) Let me know what you think of the longer chapters and if that'd be a good thing and if you have any questions feel free to PM me otherwise please review :) love to hear your thoughts :)**


	9. The Path To War

**Keeping Your Promise#9**

 **The Path To War**

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 **A/N: Hope you all enjoy :) Lemme know what you think. I've tried to up the pacing of the story a little , let me know if you think it works.**

 **LucklessBlock86: I love riddles too :) I don't know if I have, I've read one that's just called "A Fallen Knight" Without the Dark part. I do recall something like that though but no. Darkco will be a bit like anxiety and doubt for the moment. He is playing off of Marco's weakness and taking advantage of it. Plus things changing will change how much influence he has in the real world.**

 **Kerbolious: I enjoyed writing for Toffee, I don't have plans to keep him around but it won't be his last appearance before the end. I thought without the need to 'defeat' anyone he just has that sort of personality that makes you want to punch him. Marco's ring will return it was taken from him by the cultists who captured him, it wasn't recovered in the rescue but it's not the last of it. Haha XD Honestly I think Higgs would be like the perfect bridesmaid. Nothing would go wrong.**  
 **Where Darkco is concerned it's like if you had an identical twin and all your life you acted the same then suddenly they act differently from you. Everyone hates you for what you did but loves them. You're angry but curious. Darkco wonders deep down if what he did was really the only option he had or if he could have saved everyone he loved. He is still oblivious to the outside influence in his life and death but if he can make Marco more like him he will feel justified by it. Like in the Killing Joke (Batman) Joker wants to show that even the best man can be brought to darkness with one bad day. It's like that. If Marco falls to darkness then Darkco wasn't wrong and didn't let everyone down. I mean he's currently being kept from passing on as punishment and forced to watch the person who has everything he wants and could have had be happy. He's pisssssed.**

 **P. Andrew: Thank you :) I'm glad you enjoyed Flowers and Stars, I loved writing it XD although i did it under stressful conditions to get chapters out almost daily so the sequel has been nice to take more time. I wanted to explore the Kelco ship more when I started this after there wasn't too many to read and it took off from there :) I'm glad you liked the poem. Yes I write them myself, If i use a song or something that isn't mine I'll credit it or make it obvious. I wrote that one when I was working. I kept singing it to myself and it slowly turned into Heckapoo's regret. Anyway :) I hope you enjoy this chapter and those to come. Welcome to the Fan Fiction community XD I found this website in a** **YouTube** **comment and I'm so glad I did so i hope it's as great for you as it has been for me.**

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Fate walked through the Valley of the Gods, a name whose grandeur did not match its view. Darkness was what separated the Gods and darkness alone. It was why the Gods found such joy in the affairs of mortals. Their lives so weak and fragile like a candle about to be snuffed out yet they shone so brightly and together they lit up their worlds with culture, music and so much more. Fate loved watching them play out their lives, like puppets on string because within the masses of the mindless bound by destiny there were her champions. The champions of Fate, who when looking at their destiny before them chose to ignore it and design their own fates. To change fate is not easy and to overcome their destinies is an even greater feat which is why she adored her current toys. The fallen guardian, the human knight and the rebel Princess. Such interesting pawns on her chess board but each their own miracle. The Princess who like all those before her should have followed the rules and led her people against the monsters, destined to be another who leads her world to ruin. The human who would ever be the kind man, liked by all and loved by many but somehow still alone. And the baby who was destined to die inside a bin, nothing more than a bad memory. Yet here she stood walking towards her favourite one, the one who broke the rules and changed the game. She wanted to test him, to see how special he could be.

Fate knew that Dox wanted to live, to fight beside his love and friends. He wanted nothing more than the life he had always been denied yet he knew he could not. Promises and Destiny stopped him but with just a simple question and a small request Fate could give him all that he wants. Life. However, Fate knew he would not ask, he would not beg and he wouldn't bow to her. He was strong for all the weaknesses he had and it was that.. That peculiarity that really amused her.

Walking through the darkness, on a path never trod Fate made her way to the End house, the Parahouse of the dead. She smiled wondering how this interaction would go down, it was rare she got to spend time with her mortal champions. Upon growing ever near Fate paused with a confused expression. Before her the door was torn from it's hinges in pieces on the floor. The impossible had happened, something had broken into that which does not exist. She rushed into the house finding nothing but mess. Pictures ripped from walls and furniture broke in two. She scoured the house from top to bottom searching for Dox's presence yet she found none.

 **"Where are you my Guardian? And who has touched what is mine?!"** Fate screamed into the darkness. She looked to the ground where a glint of red drew her eye from beneath a fallen shelf. She blasted away the shelf and looked to the red. Blood, fresh blood. It had been used to write a message to her.

 _"War has come, he has found me. I have managed to trick him but I cannot fight a God. For now I shall try to seek refuge with the Lady of Love. I hope I can make it through the darkness… help them please. - Index"_

Fate stared at the writing and felt warmth even in the fingerprints that bloodied the floor. It was recent, in human time it could be mere hours. War had started his campaign by taking care of her eyes. Fate turned to the darkness and walked into it. With a click of her fingers the end house disappeared forever. She would find her fallen guardian, before he was taken by the death beyond death.

* * *

 **/**

Jade and Marco lay exhausted on the ground. Both trying to catch their breath desperately, their chests hurting as they breathed sharply. Jade wiped the sweat from his brow and looked over to the lizard who was sitting breathing deeply.

"So is this our win?" Jade panted out to Toffee. He looked at the blue haired boy and smiled.

"Have I fallen?"

"No…"

"Then no baby blue, you have not won. With magic alone I took you both down with ease. With physical attacks alone you were more of a challenge, you more than your one eyed disappointment beside you. However, like how a sandwich has both the bread and the filling, you will not be able to beat me until you come at me with both." Toffee stood up and began to stretch again. He readied himself and gestured for them to come at him. Marco sighed but stood up first.

He held his hand over his eye and muttered a spell quickly. He then channelled his magic around his body until he was surrounded by a glow of red and gold. He jumped forward twice the speed of before making Toffee step to the side to dodge. Toffee felt the wind brushed past him as he turned to meet Marco's gaze. Inside he knew it was about to get entertaining.

"Interesting.." Toffee began to say when Marco dove straight towards him. Toffee tried to hit him with his tail but Marco dodged with ease while jumping and kicking Toffee in the face. The force of his kick and the magic boost forced Toffee flying across the room. Marco landed and breathed deeply. His breathing was strained and skin started to turn a shade of red, as if he was being scalded by hot water. Toffee stood up and spat the blood from his mouth.

"A good attempt but it is too taxing on your body. In this form you would easily tire. An enemy who could dodge would find it no great challenge to bring you down. However, I'm intrigued to know.. Does the Princess know you can cast the All-Seeing eye spell like that." Toffee grinned wide, his sharp teeth now bloody from Marco's attack. Jade looked up at Marco to see what Toffee meant and realised his damaged eye now was glowing dark purple and green.

"It's not a spell I use lightly but it does have its uses. Star didn't see the practical side to it. If used correctly I can use it like an X-Ray or even see a patients illness at its core speeding up treatment and diagnosis." Marco's breathing grew heavier as his magic aura wavered. He felt like his throat was burning and his lungs were on fire. The very act of breathing had begun to hurt him.

"Yet here it is, being used correctly in battle. Did you come up with this before or are you improvising?" Toffee quizzed with amusement.

"I was aware of the potential, with it I can see your movement, with good reflexes and a sense for battle I can predict your moves but to continually cast it without the wand is harsh on my body.. I can probably only last another 3 minutes before passing out."

"Enough time?"

"Plenty!" Marco burst forward leaving a trail of light behind him. He used a move he developed with Kelly to both trip Toffee up and then pushing against the ground kick him into the air. Unable to dodge Marco formed a hand with his aura and grabbed him slamming him into the ground. Without waiting for confirmation Marco jumped up and brought down his foot onto the spot where Toffee fell only for him to grab his foot. His body was broken and Marco watched as bones snapped back in place and returned into his body. Anyone else would have died.

"Wonderful but that is not how a hero fights Mr. Diaz." Toffee slammed Marco into the ground forcing him to break the link to his magic. He threw him back to Jade's feet who watched on patiently taking in what Marco had shown him.

"Heroes do not kill themselves to win, if they did they would not see the ending they fought for!" Toffee yelled out to the pair. Marco froze, he thought to his time with Dox and the bonding they had over a TV series. The character who comments that the hero never sees the happy ending and never knows if the day was won. Marco had promised never to be like that, to never let the day be won without him. Tears formed in his eyes as he slammed his fist into the ground. He tried to stand but the stress of his spell had left him unable to move properly.

"Marco.." Marco looked up to see Jade looking down at him.

"I think I get it.. What you mean about your mentor and Janna.. And you. All of you see the ending as a win even if you are not in it but you are part of this story and you will see the end. I finally understood what Index meant when he told me I needed to see for myself what I lacked. Thank you." Before Marco could question what he meant Jade started to channel his mana around him. He let it enter him and leave him freely. Finally he took it inside him and from his back a pair of bright blue glowing wings formed. A sword and shield appeared in his hands and his eyes glowed brightly.

"Toffee, My name is Vu Jade Agape and I am an apostle of the Gods. In particular I am the Apostle of Love and the Frozen Eclipse. Thank you for showing me the way." Toffee smiled and went to speak of how the baby blue was using big words but before he had a chance Jade flew with haste and smashed him across the face with his shield. He then sliced off the lizards tail making him growl in pain. Toffee bared his claws to slice at Jade but he easily deflected his attacks with his wings. Dropping his weapons Jade punched Toffee directly in his face before dropping and kicking his feet from beneath him. Before he had time to react Jade pinned him to the floor with his wings, the feathers sharp enough to pierce the skin. Toffee's toothy grin went wide looking at the angelic boy.

"You see Diaz, that's what a hero looks like!" Toffee said with glee. He looked up to see Marco above him who quickly leant down and punched him in the face.

"Yeah I see you patronising bastard." Marco spat at him. Jade leant forward and tapped Marco letting his magic go into him and heal him.

"Thanks Jade.."

"No thank you Marco! I don't think you get it. I couldn't have done this without you!" Jade said with enthusiasm. He healed Toffee and let him up.

"How did I help you? I failed?"

"You missed one step, solidification of magic. It's taught at the magic school and Higgs is particularly good at it, she even makes an whole armor out of magic. With what you taught me and that knowledge I managed to reach this point.." Jade looked down at his magic and marvelled. He was balancing offensive and defensive magic to create this form. Constantly healing himself from harm. By solidifying the magic it gave it substance and let him use that deep pool of magic he rarely tapped into.

"…Wait.. What? I never got taught that?" Marco exclaimed confused. He reached into his jacket and pulled a book out. Turning to the end he read a final note.

 _"There is always more to learn Marco but I won't be around to teach it. Do not forget to ask Glossaryck to finish your training as the next few spells will separate you as a person who knows magic from a magic user. I, myself, do not have enough magic to use these spells but I'm sure you do."_ Marco groaned deeply realising he forgot to follow this instruction.

Jade laughed as he released his magic. Toffee stood up and looked at Marco.

"I will forgive you for that punch Diaz, I deserved it however how can you succeed if you forget to even finish your basic lessons?" Marco turned to him wanting to protest even when he know they were right.

"Alright.. I'll get onto it okay! I'll make sure Kelly does too.. When everything happened we kinda forgot about the note.." Toffee sighed and pulled out a vial and a set of notes from his jacket.

"What is this?"

"My blood, it's also the notes you'll need to isolate my genetic regeneration. I had someone look into it already to save you time. Use it how you will but know it is untested. It may affect more than just your eye and you will lose a bit more of what makes you human."

"You know?"

"About the monster that sleeps within your arm? Yes, all monsters do. It's why they feel such an affinity to you, you are one of us at least if only for a limb. Be careful Diaz." Toffee grabbed his jacket and tie and opened up a portal.

"Wait where are you going?" Jade asked confused.

"Home.. I have kept my oath and then some.. I'm going to go home.. Oh right I didn't tell you.. I met someone.. She's looking after our eggs as I speak.. I would very much like them to grow in a world without War so do not disappoint me any further Diaz."

"Good bye Marco Diaz and farewell Vu Jade Agape.. Good luck" And with those final words Toffee disappeared leaving the two standing confused looking at where left. They stayed silent for a while before Jade finally spoke.

"How do we get home?"

"I have no idea.."

* * *

 **/**

Janna's eyes opened wide as a door magically appeared before them. She poked her head behind it making sure there was nothing on the other side and went to grab the handle when Kelly stopped her.

"You need the to use the key or it'll send you somewhere random." Kelly explained pulling the key out from a necklace and passing it to Janna. She thrust it into the lock and turned with excitement. As the door opened Janna peered into the house and ran in excited. Star ran in after her worried that she might find something dangerous inside the magic house.

"I know she's not herself at the moment but there's no need to tell her lies Kelly.." Heckapoo moaned. Kelly turned to her confused.

"I didn't lie? Have you never tried to open the door without holding either the key or the authority?" Kelly asked confused.

"No but I helped make this house, I think I know how it works." She replied bitterly. Kelly closed the door and locked it using a command.

"Go ahead." Kelly ushered. Annoyed by her insinuating she knew the house better than her Heckapoo grabbed at the handle and tried to open it. When nothing happened she let go and turned to smugly face Kelly when she realised she was no longer in the castle. The land around her was vast and cold, snow clung to the ground and fell from the sky. The demi-goddess felt a chill start to take over her as she heard a blood churning screech from the darkness. Unaware of where she was or what was here Heckapoo drew her scissor swords and prepared for the unexpected only to have a hand grab her on the shoulder and pull her into the safety of the Parahouse.

She looked up at Kelly with the intent to apologise but only felt hurt.

"..Why..?" Heckapoo began.

"Dox used to work on it all the time, he called it 'the greatest masterpiece to ever be forged by the most beautiful woman in existence' which I can assure you is embarrassing to hear. He wanted to perfect it. The things we found on our journey, the features that could be added. He wanted to show you one day how amazing this house could be."

"…Why have you never said anything about it?"

"He never got to finish it.. And it wasn't my place. Marco keeps continuing the work, adding charms and enchantments when he's free but he said he can barely understand the work that went into this house. We talked about it but we just weren't sure if you'd even want to hear about it.. Sorry."

"Plus I mean.. You did literally stab him in the back, he wanted to make sure you wouldn't be coming to finish the job any time soon." Both girls chuckled as they reminisced about their fallen family member.

"Anyway let's get going, I'm not sure how much longer Star can handle Janna on her own." Kelly held her arm out to help Heckapoo up. She took her arm and pulled her into a hug.

"I'm glad Marco found you.. Don't ever let him go, trust me. Once you find that love worth more than life never let it go.." With that Heckapoo let go and ran to catch Janna as she swung from a chandelier. Kelly gripped tightly at her heart as guilt filled her.

"Don't let it get to you, you said you'd fix it so stay strong." Higgs said from the stairs. She sat looking down at a confused Kelly.

"You heard that?"

"Oh.. Every single word."

"You were right though.. Everyone can see how much he loves me so why did I doubt it.. Why did I ever say no."

"Because you did. Don't worry about it too much and please stop asking yourself that. I'm not sure when it started but thanks to me still having Marco's tattoo some of your thoughts are coming through and it is hella annoying." Kelly froze and looked at her.

 _"Wait.. You can hear me.."_

 _"Didn't I just say so..?"_ Kelly face-palmed as Higgs chuckled. Apparently sharing a telepathic connection was not the sort of intimacy either were expecting by growing closer. They both headed to join the rest who had settled down in the living room. Kelly smiled remembering what it felt like to see the house lively. Her moment of reminiscing was broken up by a stiff question from Janna.

"So don't any of you have boyfriends?" All of them froze and looked at Star. She gave them the look of "Why me?" Back only to have eyes rolled at her.

Heckapoo, whose partner was now a spirit in the afterlife watching over them.

Higgs, who as far as everyone was occurred had never showed any interest in any men.

And Kelly, who could hardly explain that she was dating the older version of Marco.

"Well Janna I just happen to be dating a Prince." Star started. Janna's eyes lit up and grabbed Star's hand pulling her to the sofa.

"Tell me everything!"

"Well his name is Tom Lucitor, He's a prince of the underworld."

"Wait so he's a demon like H-Poo?"

"Sort of.. Different clans and origins.. Plus Tom is half Mewman, like a human but from my Kingdom."

"Wait.. So he's the child of a forbidden love and he chose you whose also different from him?"

"Yes.." Star blushed. She never felt more embarrassed to explain her relationship. The other 3 girls had gotten snacks and sat on the opposing sofa watching with big grins.

"So how did you meet?!"

"Well we use to have to attend these royal dances for children of royalty, sort of like a good will thing. I didn't really mix well with the other children or pigeons but Tom was different. He had problems just like me."

"Problems?"

"Yep, just like you I liked to cause a little mischief and mayhem. I was a rebel of a Princess and Tom was a scary demon with a lot of power. It was like a bad idea meeting a bad idea but we worked."

"Aww so you dated ever since?"

"Ahh no.. Tom was a great guy but he had serious anger problems. He would lose his temper all the time and I couldn't take it anymore so I left him.. Years later he turned up to take me to a ball which turned out to be a trap to bind our souls together."

"Whoa.. Douche-bag move.."

"Very.. But after that he worked on his anger and over time we reached a point that we could be friends again.. A time came when I had a falling out with Mar.. With a friend I lived with and I had to leave Earth. I lived there for a while.. Tom kept me company and cheered me up and slowly I found myself falling for him again.."

"Even though he was a bit of a butt.."

"Even then.. Bad things happened here and Tom stood by my side and fought against them. When someone kidnapped my best friend I was in such a bad way that without Tom I wouldn't have been able to make it. The girls here helped a lot too.." Star smiled at them while Kelly shifted in her seat.

"Finally everything seems right.. I just think it's time we move to the next step.."

"The next step?"

"Marriage.."

"Whoa.. You really are a magical Princess.. So where is your Prince?" Janna asked innocently. Star looked out of the window into the darkness and sighed.

"He's busy working hard for my sake.."

* * *

 **/**

Tom felt a branch cut into his skin as he continued to run through the woods. The earthy smell filling his lungs as he breathed ever deeper for air only served to push him forward. He weaved between the trees with ease remembering all the times Star ran off into the wilderness. He couldn't help but picture her face and smiled. He felt movement coming up fast to his right and left so jumped up into the trees. He continued moving only looking down to see the shadows speed after him. He was reaching the end of the forest so used the last little bit of his magic to push himself into the clearing. He fell from the sky and rolled to his feet before running on. The shadows burst from the woodland and gained on him. Tom smiled as he dodged each attack they came at him with and finally he reached out to the brick wall in front of him and touched it gently.

"Home.. I win!" Tom chuckled as he fell to the group. Suddenly all the shadows jumped onto him and licked his face. Tom picked all the wolf cubs up and span them round fast. Each laughed and howled with each spin.

"Not fair Mr. Tom!?" One cub protested.

"Yeah you used magic!" Another spoke out.

"And you're telling me that none of you peaked when the rules clearly stated that you were to hunt me on instinct alone?" Tom returned their questions. They all shifted in his arms and refused to make eye contact.

"I thought so! Anyway I have to go meet up with your parents so why don't you keep playing. Take turns and see if you can win without cheating this time." Tom winked at them and then let them down. With speed he had to grow used to seeing they disappeared back into the wood. He had never really encountered the Lycanthrope race of Monsters but understood why the Mewmans were quick to try to run the race to extinction. They were fast, strong and could track you for days until you could no longer run. As warriors they could be unmatched but companions he found he had seen few as loyal to each other. Living with them for the last few weeks had been an education for him.

He walked through the castle admiring it once again. The amount of sheer effort and determination that was used to create this castle in such a short time really impressed him. It also really impressed the newly re-instated Monster Royalty. They had been great in helping Tom by supporting his attempts to unite all the youth royalty. To guide them together under one banner, not subject to the rules of their individual kingdoms but the rules they create themselves. It will be a place for these children to grow freely and express themselves among their peers. He had help from Marco and was introduced to the girls of St O's, which was an eye opening experience to see how well Marco had perfected the Turdina persona. They knew he was a boy but it was what he had represented not who he was. The idea itself rather than the origin. Thanks to that he was half way there. Luna had allowed him to take the cubs and meet with the other monster royals. The two sides of the coin had come together now all he had to do was unite them. Star's earlier attempts at joining them with the party had also been great aid as Princess Spiderbite was a great advocate speaking on behalf of the monster royalty. After all the politics had been dealt with Tom had left all groups to discuss between themselves. He was the older generation and the group he made was not for him, or for Star. It was for those who would come after. He didn't want followers he wanted leaders and so he asked them to come up with a name for their group and a message to stand by.

After that he headed back to the Lycanthrope Kingdom and continued to help Luna and Sun. She had established the pack link with him but in doing so she opened herself and their children to his pain. For 2 days and 2 nights they howled in agony, bonded through more than blood. They shared his anger, his hurt and his sorrow and once they had experienced it all she had shared with him their hopes. The rebuilding of their home and a safe future for their children. Sun watched through memories Tom's arrival and everything that happened since. Finally when they had shared everything they had with each other they sat in silence and held each other. The cubs clung to their fathers fur as Luna licked his face. Physically it would take longer to recover but mentally he had regained his former self.

Tom smiled as he walked into the throne room remembering the joy the family shared together. He looked at the empty thrones and sighed. One thing this family shared other than joy was a love of the hunt. Tom readied his armor and walked across the room.

"Luna?.. Sun?.." Tom called out to the shadows. Before he had met them he would have assumed he was alone but now he could feel the gazes from the shadows.

"Come out?" He called again. He heard the slightest movement and jumped. He watched a shadow zoom underneath him and sighed quickly before the other pounced at him pinning him to the ground. He looked at her brown fur as she nuzzled against him.

"Hello Prince" She chuckled as she lifted him from the ground. She brushed off the fur and let out a low growl to signal Sun. He walked from the darkness as if he belonged there. Unlike his partner Sun had light grey fur with white streak across him. His fur was darker, almost black, on his paws and face but this just seemed to shine more than darken his figure. His voice was low and deep but he was a Lycan of few words.

"Greetings" Sun nodded to him and then rubbed his nose against Luna's. After he ran and jumped from the window heading into the direction of the forest.

"Heading out to hunt?"

"Only for cubs, time for nap." Luna said with a smile as she led Tom to somewhere to sit.

"You know Luna I could have sworn when we met you only had 2 cubs?" Tom asked confused remembering the balls of fuzz that fell from the cupboard.

"Rest were hidden better, only took the restless." She explained. The others wouldn't have been found if she took the ones who were too curious.

"Ahh I see, anyway you said you wanted to talk to me about something?" Tom said laughing at her comment. The two he was most familiar were certainly the more active and adventurous.

"I wanted to talk about this.." Luna pulled a small box which Tom immediately recognised. He patted himself down and realised it must be the ring meant for Star.

"How?"

"One of the cubs picked it up when you were playing.. I assumed from the colour scheme and the way you are restless to return I assume this is a ring meant for the Princess Star?" Luna smiled revealing her large sharp teeth. Tom sighed again.

"Yes, when I return I hope to ask Star to marry me, to stay by my side forever." Tom admitted with a smile.

Luna sat down on the ground and beckoned Tom to do the same, he was use to it after spending many a time sitting on the floor rather than using the chairs and furniture.

"Talk to me about your mate."

"Why do you want to know?" Tom asked intrigued.

"Curiosity is one reason but the other is that I need to know."

"Care to explain..?" Luna's smiled turned to a frown for a brief moment before began to talk.

"Lycanthrope are loyal above all else, it is the pack or nothing. Once we find each other we will stay together beyond death, that is the eternal vow we live by. Our howling at the moon is actually us promising the night sky that we will uphold that vow. For in light our lies are shown but in darkness they hide so we promise the night light that we are faithful." Tom listened attentively. This was all fascinating information to him. He had spend many days studying each race in order to better help Star but found most of the tomes and relics about the monster races were either perverted with lies or destroyed. He had developed an interest in monster culture and loved to learn more.

"Generally the promise we howl for is the one to our mate and lover. A promise of commitment however in the time before the purge of our kind there was one other vow, a vow of loyalty and a sign of trust. That pledge is to a master or King that we wish to serve. Although I know it is not your will, The Kingdom of Lycanthrope bow to you as both our saviour and our master." Tom was flabbergasted at what he had just heard. He looked into her eyes seeing only seriousness.

"Luna that is unnecessary! First of all I'm here on the request of Star and her Kingdom, they are the ones who made all this happen and even if they didn't you don't need to bow to me.." Tom started trying to protest but stopped when he saw no hesitation in Luna. Behind him Sun and the cubs returned who all sat beside them.

"You told him?" Came an uncommon question from Sun. His low voice drawing the eyes of all.

"Yes, he knows." Luna replied. Sun nodded in response and before Tom could say anything both royals and the cubs bowed to him. Tom couldn't take it anymore so stood to leave when a low growl set the cubs on him pinning him down.

"Master Tom, please understand, you have not forced us into this action. We wish to follow you as is our choice and while you may be reluctant you cannot change our mind. Once a promise has been made it cannot be broken, as is our way." Tom tapped the ground to admit defeat and most of the cubs piled off of him. The two that remained sat in his lap as he turned to the royals.

"What does this mean? Like is it like an alliance between Kingdoms as that already exists?"

"We know of the alliance and we shall follow, the cubs will follow the other youth into creating a better tomorrow but where it differs is that if a threat were to pose itself to you we would not hesitate to hunt it down and destroy it. Regardless of position and reason we will put you before this world." Tom looked at their unbreakable resolve and admitted defeat. He'd have to explain this to Star.

"That reminds me.. What does this have to do with Star and the ring?" Tom questioned confused.

"To us, our mate is an extension our ourselves, so for us your mate will be the same as you, our master. We wish to know about the one you love and who we shall be serving."

"I understand. In that case.. Cubs! Gather round its story time." All the cubs shot to attention as they wanted to hear the story.

"Once there was a Prince, he was born with many powers and because of that he was feared. His mother was a big powerful demon but his father a small fragile Mewman. It was a love he didn't understand at the time and when others made fun of him he got angry. The Prince, who now was full of anger and hate, was forced to attend a dance. The dance was full of annoying children who also mocked his parent's love. He was about to lose his temper and unleash his power when the most beautiful princess that ever lived did a full roundhouse kick onto one of the bad children. The Prince was spellbound by her. She had hated how the other children were being mean and thought my parents were cool. She was like the Prince, different and misunderstood."

"And they lived happily ever after?" One of the young cubs called out. Tom ruffled their fur but sighed.

"No children they didn't, for you see, the Prince was consumed with the anger he felt. The princess relieved him of his anger but he ended up pushing her away from him. His anger had hurt her. He loved her and had lost her. Over time he came to realise it was his anger that ruined things so tried to fix his anger. While he was busy the Princess moved away and ended up becoming best friends with an Earth warrior of great valour. He was brave, strong and above all kind. He had everything the Prince lacked and on their first meeting he cut off the Prince's hand!" The cubs gasped as Toms hand popped off and ran across the floor before returning to his arm.

"The Prince was jealous, he came up with bad ideas to win back his love but like with his anger he drove her away. In desperation he tried to befriend the Warrior in hopes of using him but by doing so he learnt the error of his ways. He stayed friends with the warrior and stopped trying to win the Princess over. He worked on his anger and decided to lead his people."

"And then what happened?" Asked the same cub as before. Tom smiled.

"Well you know there's a saying that if you love something let it go and if it's meant to be it will return to you. She did just that. She came home and once again the two met at the dance. The other children like them now almost adults kept their distance from the Prince but were enthralled by her awakened beauty. The Prince, not wanting to mislead the Princess, chose to ignore her which annoyed her. In the end they were made to dance together. At odds with their emotions and the conflict in their hearts they danced with passion alone, this passion manifested as their powers. Behind the prince a trail of fire burned bright and behind the Princess a storm of butterflies appeared. As they twirled the powers joined in a beautiful vortex of colour and emotion.

But that was only the beginning. They worked towards their relationship, falling deeper in love with one another. The Prince had a rival however as the Warrior also shared the bond with the Princess. He respected the warrior so did not try to stop him as they waited for the Princess to decide who she loved. It was around that time when tragedy struck and the Warrior and his Knight were taken by the bad guy. The Princess searched far and wide for them with the Prince at her side. Together they found their missing friends and realised they belong with each other.

The Prince and the Princess were now happy and in love, both working towards a bright new future and the Prince wanted to ask her a question.. Will you be my happy ever after?" Tom smiled remembering the journey to get to the point they had reached. The cubs cheered as Luna and Sun smiled to each other. Tom looked at the ring and decided it was time to return. To see everyone and see just how well they were all doing.

* * *

 **/**

Star and the girls all sat around the kitchen island passing the ice cream around. Janna howled in laughter at their stories as each told her of their magical mishaps and adventures. Kelly was pouring over a few books they had gathered to rebuild Dox's study. Between her and Marco they remembered every book that their teacher owned and were trying to collect them all to great difficulty. Heckapoo, between summoning things to amuse Janna, was looking at an archive of magic that the MCM possessed hoping that in there she would find the answer to save their friend. Star looked down at her mirror phone and noticed that there was no reception.

"Hey, Kelly? Why can't I get reception?" Star asked forcing Kelly to look up from her book.

"The house has a similar signal blocker like the one at the abandoned castle. Me and Marco are use to having a telepathic link so we never thought to remove it. Dox had installed it so the house couldn't be traced but Marco must have turned it back on for some reason. Let me go turn it off" Kelly sighed before walking to the living room. She picked up the TV remote and pressed a button before returning to her seat.

"That's it?" Higgs questioned bemused.

"Yep, Universal remote, let's you control most of the functions that aren't life threatening. I seriously don't think I will ever fully understand this house." Kelly sighed again as everyone's phones began to light up. They all looked at them to see multiple missed calls when Star's phone rang again.

"Hello?" Star answered.

"Princess!? Finally! You need to return to the kingdom! Some cult has attacked and they are trying to kill monster kind! The guards and royal forces are moving to stop them but I worry they will not be enough! Please hurry before somethin-!" The line went dead.

"Who was it Star?" Heckapoo asked worried as Star's face went pale.

"Ruby.. The Professors wife.. We need to go home now! The cult has attacked!" Everyone immediately began to move. Higgs materialised her armor as the other girls all got their weapons out. Kelly guided the house to the kingdom.

"We're here." Kelly stated as she opened the door. Before their eyes they saw many civilians running from people in white cloaks. They wore masks that unmistakably had the Cult of Wars Mewman divisions logo on it. Star was the first to fly out and grab two cultists by their heads crushing them together. Higgs cut down a few more and Kelly punched one so hard they went flying into another. Heckapoo opened up a portal straight to the prison cells and they tossed them all in.

"Whoa that was so amazing!" Janna yelled ecstatically. Behind her one cultist who had evaded detection rushed at an unaware Janna with a knife and would have succeeded in stabbing her if a monster hadn't jumped in the way. The monster was stabbed in the shoulder but his actions let Star take down the cultist. Kelly rushed over to heal the man.

"Are you okay?!" Kelly asked the monster. He was rather small and covered in light brown fur. He had green eyes and spikes coming from his back. He looked like the cross between a small bear and a porcupine. Blood seeped from his shoulder as he smiled at them.

"Yes my Lady. I saw the coward go for Lady Janna and jumped in. It was probably unnecessary given who you are but I didn't want to let my Mewman brothers down." The monster smiled as Janna came forward and gave him a hug, crying into his fur. He was shocked to see the all powerful witch cry for him but knew those who walked beside the Princess held hearts bigger than most.

"No.. You saved her and I thank you deeply for your actions, can you explain what has happened here?" Star knelt down to be closer to the monster. He nodded respectfully towards the Princess.

"It started a few hours ago, people around us, Mewmans to be exact, suddenly started to pull these capes over themselves and put on masks. We thought it might be the theatre group doing a publicity stunt when some skinny and scruffy looking man came running down the street screaming to us all-"

"Did he look like he might wet himself if you went boo?" Heckapoo interrupted. The monster looked at her perplexed and then smiled.

"Oh yes.. He did seem the jumpy kind."

"So it was Schmitt, he recognised the uniforms and tried to get people to run away." Heckapoo explained.

"Actually my Lady, his message was far greater than for us to flee… the man you called Schmitt. He ran across the kingdom spreading his message. 'Those in white are the enemies of peace. They seek to harm monster kind and end our peace. I call to all you monsters to protect those weaker than yourself and to the Mewmans of butterfly kingdom please protect the monsters beside you.' People answered his call.. We gathered all the children and elderly we could putting them on the backs of monsters who could fly them to safety. Then the very Mewmans who had denied our kind for decades stood between us and those cultists. They told the Mewmans that they didn't want to spill 'proper' blood only those who were spoiled but they didn't move. They protected us. The cultists were trying not to hurt the Mewmans at all so with them standing in their way many of us escaped. If not for the warning and people responding I imagine it would have been a massacre." The monster groaned in pain. His shoulder healed but the damage still done.

"Thank you, you have helped us a great deal. Find cover and rest. We'll end this." Star thanked the monster and then turned to the others.

"Okay girls, we'll head inwards to the centre where we fought Dox. It seems like the likeliest place for the cultist leaders to be. All we need to do is take them down and the guards will do the rest. Janna, I'm going to cast a spell on you that makes you invisible, I want you to follow behind us but hide as soon as there's trouble.. Okay?" Star cast her spell without hesitation, not giving the others time to protest her plan. The group moved inward to the centre however they found no more cultists. As they approached the area they were surprised to see a crowd gathered. Pausing to look on they noticed someone standing on a makeshift stage that had something hidden under cloth. He was addressing the Mewmans who had formed a circle around the monsters stopping the cultists from getting to them. It seems the cultists had surrounded the people trying to protect monsters and were now trying to get them to move without killing them.

"Now.. What a beautiful situation we find ourselves in. How the very same people who damned your kind and made you suffer now stand between you and your death. It's almost sickening. If not for this moron here we would have been able to do our cleansing and leave well before now. However you just had to go interfere didn't you.. Schmitt?" The man on stage kicked at a person bound by his feet. He coughed and gasped for air as the deranged man kept kicking him. The man in question didn't don the same attire as the rest of the cultists. His clothes were red unlike the white of the rest and instead of a mask it looked like he'd carved the symbol onto his forehead. Blood still dripped down his face as he laughed.

"It's so unlike you Schmitt! For a coward to become a hero now isn't that just a absolutely disgusting cliché. I looked for you.. For years.. I wanted to kill you so bad and you must have imagined my surprise when I saw you escape from the recruitment meeting. I thought to myself, odds are if I stick with these losers I'll see you again and here we are! Best friends reunited. Except.. One of us betrayed the other.. What was it you called me? A psychopathic murderous bastard? Well I guess the truth hurt. However still Schmitt I didn't expect you of all people to try to protect the freaks of this world. I mean personally I don't give a damn about this whole War thing I just want to kill.. Kill as many as I can.. And when War starts.. Everyone is free game.. I'll drink their blood, bath with their organs and maybe for a little juggle some hearts. Oh the fun I could have.. But it will wait.. Isn't that right.. Princess?" The man turned to where Star and the others were hiding and smiled.

The girls sprung forth and started to fight off the cultists when the man called them again.

"Stop right now." Everyone turned to him as he stood with a big smile.

"Lay down your weapons and watch the show." Everyone went to move again when the man pulled off one of the cloths to reveal a rather worse for wear demon hanging from a post. His wrists were red from the barbed wire that hung him up.

"Now if you don't want your boyfriend to die, put down your weapons, cancel your magic and sit on the ground." The man's tone was cold and his cheery facade was even more unsettling as he stared at the group. None of them moved or obeyed so the man tore another cloth down revealing one of the monster civilians. He appeared to be half tree half Mewman, Marco had called their race Tree-folk before as it was similar to something on Earth. The crazed man drew a dagger from his waist and slit the Tree-folks throat. Blood poured from his neck as a child and woman began to scream out from the protected monsters.

"I will.. Not ask again.. Drop, cancel and sit." He warned. Realising the gravity of the situation the girls obeyed. Cultist came from behind them and injected them with the anti-magic drug.

"Wonderful.. Now the show can begin.." He grabbed the tree folk he had killed and threw him onto the floor in front of the survivors. He then grabbed Schmitt and hung him up like Tom. He pulled off the final cover to reveal Ruby.

"Ladies, Gentleman and Scum. Here I bring you the awakening. Before you stand three people who single-handedly have given over your kingdom to despicable creatures. I bet your wondering why your dear Princess Star isn't up here too well firstly, she was always too stupid to achieve anything on her own. Her success lies with boyfriends 1 and 2. Tom Lucitor of the Underworld and Marco Diaz of Earth. Both who will suffer for their crimes. My dear friend Schmitt here earned an upgrade from just being killed for being the prick he is to being an example of what happens when you stand in our way. Finally we have the beautiful Ruby Barnus Owl. Now she was the first to taint her blood with a monster and even marry it. Worst of all. She carries its young inside her. Yes folks. She is pregnant with the beasts offspring." Ruby, who was gagged, looked at Kelly, Heckapoo and the others with tears in her eyes. The man walked between the three people twirling his blade deciding who should die when he noticed a child crawling over to dead tree folks body. The little girl had gotten free from the survivors and now cradled her fathers body. The man sat on the edge of the stage and faced her.

"Hello?" He said bemused. The little girl looked up in horror as he smiled to her. She tried to back away but the cultists had already blocked her exit.

"Hello.."

"Is that your daddy?"

"..Yes.."

"I'm sorry, no child should watch their parent die in front of them. Sadly I'm here working for these guys so its just business. You see.. My dad died in front of me too.. It was my first kill.. I poisoned the bastards mead and watched as he choked on his own vomit. I get how you feel.. Hmm.. I know.. Do you want to hear a lullaby?" The man's twisted smile curved around his face. The child was petrified so only nodded out of fear of refusing the man.

"Awesome.. First however let's share names. What's your name little girl?"

"..am"

"Sorry didn't quite catch that. Speak louder."

"Amber.."

"Lovely, the names Lucian but you can just call me Luci" He smiled again. He sat down and pulled clicked his fingers. Suddenly two cultists rushed forward carrying a keyboard.

"A good knife and my keyboard, only two things I make sure is always near.." He chuckled and started to play.

"Climbing through your window,  
Knocking down your door,  
I'm not going to rest,  
Until your dead upon the floor,

I'm not truly mad,  
Just clinically insane,  
Now let me open up the door,  
To my world of pain,

Even if we all die,  
The world will just keep turning,  
But I would rather wait and see,  
Until the world ends burning,

Monsters walk around as men,  
But men refuse to see,  
That monsters are just dressed as men,  
A difference? Just fantasy,

Now I rest bathed in blood,  
I'm born again anew,  
The time has come to end our lies,  
And also the end for you." Lucian finished his song and smiled at the girl. She started to cry and to back away but the cultists just laughed and pushed her onto her fathers dead body.

"You know.. No one ever seems to like my lullaby.. I guess that's why I kill them all.. And now its your turn." He quickly lunged forward and brought his bloody blade down into flesh hearing a crunching sound as it broke bone.

"Well.. Colour me impressed. Even after being drugged with enough magic poison to kill a warlock here you stand ruining my fun. Is that really any way to act.. Princess?" Lucian laughed again. Star had moved using the last of her strength to shield the little girl from harm. The blade had pierced her right shoulder and blood ran down her arm.

"P..Princess.." Cried Amber. Star shushed her and stroked her hair. She went to try to say that it would be okay when Lucian ripped the blade from her shoulder.

"Yes Princess.. Why do you want to die? I've never killed a Princess before so I was planning on savouring your death but I guess we can just rush it." Lucian raised his blade but another cultist grabbed his hand.

"Sir? The Apostle told us to only capture the Princess, not to kill her?" The cultist let go and Lucian smiled.

"Ahh right you are! How could I forget..? Oh remind me.. Did she say anything about you dying?"

"No Sir."

"Wonderful." Before the cultist could even move Lucian stabbed him in the throat and kicked him away.

"Anyone else intending to interrupt my performance?" Silence fell among everyone.

"Now Princ-" A giant vine struck Lucian across the face sending him smashing into the stage. The cultists started to look around but nothing prepared them for what happened. Above them the sky started to darken and lightning began to fall. Vines burst from the ground ablaze with green flames and attacked the cultists. The slowest had their necks snapped by a quick flick of the vines but the faster ones suffered more when the vines began to grab their limbs and tear them apart. The lightning started to strike the buildings around them causing fires to burst out. The situation had changed completely and the monsters began to run. Some stopped to try helping the girls but under Star's orders took the girl, her fathers body and left them.

"Okay Janna you can stop now!" Star called out to where Janna was hiding. She suddenly became visible and Star gasped. Her make up had run leaving black lines running from her eyes. Her nose bled and her eyes had turned completely green. The lightning began to strike harder and the vines thrashed more when laughter filled the area.

"Ha.. Ha.. Ha.. Hahahahaahaah" Star looked up to see a hand rise from the broken stage.

"Janna.. Run! Please just run!" Star screamed out to her but she didn't listen. She turned to the laughter and made the vines smash into the stage. Tom, Schmitt and Ruby were all knocked from the stage out of view.

"Haha.. Well that was a surprise." From the rubble a now bloody Lucian rose. His left arm hung from his shoulder either broken or dislocated and one of his eyes hung from its socket.

"Looks like I missed one." Lucian started to run towards Star again when the vines burst into a wall stopping him.

"STAY AWAY FROM MY FRIENDS!" Janna screamed out. Her voice sounding as if she was possessed.

"Then I'll have to come for you!" Lucian ran towards Janna, he dodged the vines and lightning that struck around him. He was almost within knifing distance of Janna when a bright light filled with red and blue blinded him.

* * *

 **/**

Back with Marco and Jade

"So.. Did it work?" Jade asked peering over Marco's shoulder as his eye began to twitch and release a weird steam.

"I don't know.. Wait.." Marco dropped the syringe and grabbed at his face as pain surged through his body. His arm began to ache with intense agony as a sudden hunger for bowels filled him. He persevered through the pain and when it eased up he looked at Jade with both eyes. He could see again.

"I think so.." Marco closed his eyes and looked again almost in disbelief at how quickly it had worked.

"That's amazing!"

"Yeah.. I guess the only good thing about being locked in this dimension is that time goes slower here."

"How'd you figure that?" Jade asked intrigued.

"Well it was something I added to my phone, an app you can get from Quest Buy. After spending time in different dimensions with different time zones so to say I wanted a way to tell the difference. I mean its confusing. I once spent 16 years in a dimension only to find out it was 8 minutes on Earth."

"Wait how old are you?"

"It's a tricky question to answer these days.. Anyway its been about 2 days since Toffee left but only a few hours in real time. I'm glad I could use his research to fix my eye by we are no closer to finding a way out of here."

 **"No but now we're not so different are we? Pumping strange blood into our bodies.. Looks like I wasn't the only one who started turning into a monster after all"**

 _"Shut up. I am nothing like you."_

 **"Sure.. And Santa is real and the tooth fairy too! Face it! You are just as much of me as I am of you.. It won't be long and maybe I won't be the only Marco to turn to darkness.. I await you.. Haha."**

"Marco?" Marco looked up as Darkco fell silent inside his mind.

"I said are you sure there's nothing we can do to get out?"

"Well unless someone's just gonna open the door for us I doubt it." Both sighed and sat down when Jade started staring at Marco.

"Ermm.."

"Yeah?"

"You into ninjas?"

"Why?" Jade pointed to Marco's hoodie and realised that it started to wrap around his body changing it from his usual attire until he looked like a ninja start out of a cartoon. Except he seemed to have kept the red colour of his hoodie.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Marco barley finished speaking when something grabbed his leg and began pulling him into the darkness. Jade quickly grabbed their stuff before grabbing Marco's hand and letting whatever was doing it drag him too.

"What are you doing!?"

"What! I've watched enough of your life to know you just raised an event flag! I think we're heading home!"

"Your basing this off what EXACTLY!"

"Anime Logic!"

"Wha-" The pair found themselves being dragged through a crack in the darkness and were both torn from the dimension. They looked down to see the Butterfly Kingdom on fire and vines thrashing buildings down. Jade immediately spotted Janna about to be attacked and pulled her to safety.

Marco landed in front of Lucian and then peered over to Star.

"Friend or Foe?"

"Foe!" She screamed back.

Marco lunged forward with his hand coated in magic and struck Lucian in the throat. He started to choke, gasping for air when Marco roundhouse kicked him unconscious. He ran to Kelly, Star, Higgs and Heckapoo and started giving them the magic poison cure.

"Marco stop. You need to stop Janna!"

"Stop Janna what?" Marco turned to see Jade being thrown through a building as flames began to circle around Janna.

"Don't worry I got this.."

"Hey Jade! If your still good can you heal the girls!" He called into the rubble and chuckled as a hand popped out with a thumbs up.

Marco rushed over to Janna ignoring the flames, dodging the vines with ease and swatting the lightning away.

He grabbed her hands and made her look into his eyes.

"Janna its me! It's me Marco! Listen to me! Stop!" He called out to her. Almost as if he cast a spell the magic around them started to stop as the vines withered away and the flames started to die. Janna's eyes lost the green glow as she stared at Marco.

"You're late.." She whispered. He looked into her eyes and back at his ninja attire and noticed something was wrong.

"Janna.. Take my mask off.." Janna reached forward and slid his mask off. She looked at his face and the scar that ran over his eye. She looked at his brown and red eyes and started to push him away.

"You're not Marco." Janna tried to squirm free from his grip but it was no use.

"Wait Janna.. It is me.. I just have a disguise on." Marco ran his hand over his body and a rippling appeared in the air. Something akin to glitter started to circle Marco and it seemed like he began to shrink until standing before Janna was a younger version of Marco, before the scars and battles. A child.

"See.. It's me.." Janna rushed forward and hugged him tightly. She began to cry into his hoodie as Star and the others approached. Jade rubbed at his head as he watched the scene in front of him.

"How much did we miss?" The girls all turned to him and sighed.

* * *

 **/**

Marco rubbed his eyes with his hands trying to make reality of the situation that lay before him. He had cast a sleep spell on Janna to calm her down and then the group set about taking down or arresting the rest of the cultists. They put out the fires and gave medical attention when necessary. Schmitt only needed to have the magic poison cure given to him but Tom was in a pretty bad way. No one had much contact with him so wasn't sure how long he'd been out but he wasn't showing signs of waking up. Barnus had turned up in a fit of worry but after hearing that Ruby and their baby would be okay he calmed down.

Star had filled Marco in on everything that had happened in his absence and they now looked in on Janna who was sleeping.

"So let me get this straight? She's losing her memory and because of that she's reverted to her mental age of 8?"

"Yes and that's all I know. I'm almost as new to this situation as you are. I'm not sure what's going on but I'm kind of hoping you'll have better luck than me. I'm going to see if Tom's woken up yet and I'll start searching the magic archives for anything that can help.. I'll see you later okay."

"Sure thing.. Thanks Star." Star waved goodbye to Marco and left the room. As she did Jade followed in after her.

"So is there anything we can do?"

"I'm not really sure yet. Until she wakes up I can't really tell if the age regression is fixed. If it is then it's going to take a lot more than we have to heal her. For now, let her sleep. When she wakes I want to take her back to earth and get her an MRI test and do everything we can the earth way. That was we can cover both science and magic."

"Promise me something though.."

"What?"

"No suicidal ideas please.. We have enough problems as it is without another sacrifice."

"I promise Jade... Are you going to stay with her?"

"I won't leave her side for even a second.. I'll call if she wakes." Marco nodded to Jade and left the room. He walked down the hall to see Heckapoo sitting there. She looked up making eye contact with him and tried to leave when he grabbed her and pulled her in to a hug.

"It's not your fault.. Its no ones fault. I'm not angry. I promise." He felt light sobbing come from the demi-goddess as she cried in his arms. He held her tight and told her it'd all be okay. After a few minutes he let her go and passed her a tissue to blow her nose.

"Is it okay if I go in?" She asked meekly.

"Of course it is, Jade's in there as well but if she wakes it'll be better if its a face she knows. We'll fix this.. We always do." Heckapoo smiled weakly before saying goodbye and heading into the room. Marco walked until he thought he was alone and then punched at the wall swearing.

"Hardly the actions of a knight? To damage royal property." Marco opened his eyes to see Higgs looking at him worried. She walked forward and ruffled his hair.

"Come on Diaz, that's not the spirit I expect from you."

"I'm finding it harder each day to keep that spirit up.. I should have been here.."

"I thought you just told Heckapoo that it was no ones fault.."

"You were listening?"

"You were lying?"

"No.."

"Then don't blame yourself. Your situation was out of your control and on the plus side you managed to heal your eye. No one blames you so don't blame yourself.. Please. Anyway I'm not here for a pep talk I just wanted to return something."

"Return what?" Higgs lifted her top causing Marco to turn and blush.

"Oh.. Damn dude your shy.. I just wanted you to get your tattoo back but seriously if I realised this is all it took to throw you off your game I'd be stripping during all of our practice matches." Higgs laughed as she held his hand over the tattoo. Marco whispered the spell then held his hand to his heart. Higgs looked down and saw it was gone. She tried to talk to Kelly but the link was gone.

"Great! You can look again now." Marco turned to face her only to see a fist about to strike his face. With no time to react he was knocked to the ground in pain.

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR!" Higgs knelt down beside him.

"I'm your mentor.. I'm training you.. You are my responsibility.. If you ever sacrifice yourself for my sake and only save me again and I'll kick your ass. Either we escape together or we stick by each other and this isn't up for debate. Anyway I think it's about time you saw her. She's waiting in the garden." Higgs ruffled his hair again before leaving him rubbing his nose on the floor. Marco pulled himself up and walked down the hallway. He spoke briefly to any castle workers he saw on the way before making his way to the garden. He looked around until he spotted her. She was standing under an arch of roses. She looked nervous as she waited for him to approach.

"..Hey.."

"Hi.."

"Are you okay.." He asked her as he ran his hand against her cheek. She grabbed his hand and held it tight against her, taking in all his heat.

"No.. I really don't think I will be for a while but I think that's the same for everyone.."

"Sorry.."

"Don't apologise Marco.. You've only ever done right by all of us.."

"I should have been there to protect you.."

"We don't need protecting and if anything it's my fault you weren't by my side.."

"Kelly.."

"No it needs to be said Marco.. I need to say it.. Please.."

"Okay.."

"Please don't laugh.. I'm trying my best here.." Before Marco could question her words Kelly began to hum a tune to herself. He listened never letting go of her hand and never letting her fade from his vision. She turned and stared him in the eye and started to sing to him.

"Together we are tough even when its rough,  
How could that ever be bad?,  
I don't wanna lose you, I don't know what id do,  
It might just drive me mad,

I don't know when, I don't know why,  
But I've fallen in love with you,  
I don't care how, I don't care where,  
But I need you to love me too,

The road will be bumpy and journey is harsh,  
The path ahead might make us bleed,  
But hold onto love and don't let go of hope,  
For me, I need you to believe,

We'll overcome ours fears no matter what nears,  
Armageddon is just another day,  
Our love can face it all and we'll never fall,  
We'll fight all what comes our way,

I don't know when, I don't know why,  
But I'm crazy in love with you,  
I don't care how, I don't care where,  
But I'm desperate for you to love me too,

I may have let you down but please don't keep that frown,  
I'll only ever love you,  
I should never have said that lie, it almost meant goodbye,  
Saying no was wrong to do,

I want to stay by your side,  
Never letting you go away,  
I want to be yours forever,  
For tomorrow and every other day,

I need you to know how much I love you,  
I need you to know how much you mean to me,  
I need you to know that I'll always love you,  
So now Marco I want you to please marry me." Kelly finished singing and just looked into his eyes. She was scared. Scared that after hurting him he wouldn't feel the same when she saw a tear fall down his cheek. She leaned over a kissed it off his cheek.

"Why are you crying Marco.."

"Because this is all I've ever wanted.. For you to say yes.."

"I'm so sorry I said no before.. I was just worried that you and me was just because we were forced together by fate.."

"Are you stupid? I love you.. I love you more than words can even begin to describe and I know languages of actual magic. We have defied fate together, broken through dimensions and even changed the future. We have our home and I dream of the day we have a family to join us in it.. How could I ever not love you.. For you. Kelly, you are amazing! You are beautiful, smart, funny and so strong both physically and emotionally.. You literally hold me together.. All those months you were just a thought away seem like centuries away now. I miss you so much. All the time I was fighting for my life I was fighting to be back by your side. I grow stronger each and every day just because I wont be left behind by you. Forced together? No.. But I won't let anything force us apart." Marco held his hands to her face and pressed his lips against hers. He could feel tears rolling down her face as she smiled. He kissed her passionately as she wrapped her arms around his neck returning his passion with her own. The world around them faded away as they held each other again.

 _"Hello Marco.."_

 _"Hi Kelly.."_

 _ **"Yes.. Hello Kelly"**_


	10. The Weakness Of Mortals

**Keeping Your Promise#10**

 **The Weakness Of Mortals**

 **A/N: Hope you all had a fantastic holidays and welcome to the new year. Took longer to get around to than I originally planned due to Fable Seekers and an extra long chapter for Legacy but here you go :) Hope you all enjoy it as the story begins it's final arc.**  
 **Disclaimer: Song used is 'Unchained Melody' By The Righteous Brothers. I do not own the song. (Give it a listen though, amazing song!)**

 **. - Thank you for your review :) I love it too :3**

 **\- Thank you for your fantastic review :) I glad you had such a blast from start to present and I hope you enjoy the next** **instalment** **. I write all my own poems and if not I'd credit it (E.g. The song in this chapter) I have to say my** **favourite** **ones are actually in Legacy but I did enjoy Heckapoo's poem to Dox in the muddy field. Also it's fine haha Grammar isn't exactly my strong point.**

* * *

 **/**

The door opened slowly as a gentle hand pushed against the handle. The usually drab décor of the dance studio had been changed to a more bright and vibrant setting. Streamers and balloons were scattered around the room as she made her way in. She loved how he had cast the room a scarlet red with lights everywhere. Looking up it was like looking at a rose tinted starry sky with the fairy lights he'd hung across the ceiling. She made her way through the balloons that littered the ground until she arrived on the dance floor. Music suddenly began to play causing her to spin to meet his gaze.

 _"Oh, my love, my darling_  
 _I've hungered for your touch_  
 _A long, lonely time_  
 _Time goes by so slowly_  
 _And time can do so much"_

Marco stood back and turned the speaker volume higher. He straightened his tie and turned to the floor behind him.

 _"Are you still mine?_  
 _I need your love_  
 _I need your love_  
 _God speed your love to me,"_

There she was standing there waiting for him. He walked forward and took her hands in his. They started to sway to the rhythm as he slid his arms around her waist and she left hers wrapped gently around his neck. Marco stared into her eyes and heard the chorus kick in again as they span slowly across the dance floor.

 _"Lonely rivers flow_  
 _To the sea, to the sea_  
 _To the open arms of the sea_  
 _Lonely rivers sigh_  
 _"Wait for me, wait for me"_  
 _I'll be coming home, wait for me"_

She rested her head on his shoulder as he led them across the floor. The lights dimmed apart from the one that followed them as they danced. He was wearing his favourite brand of after shave again, she could tell. She let herself get lost in the music and in him as he twirled her gently by her hand before pulling her back into him.

Marco felt her light figure press against her and found himself running his fingers through her hair. She blushed as he made eye contact but couldn't resist parting her curly hair from her face and looking directly into her eyes.

 _"Oh, my love, my darling_  
 _I've hungered, for your touch_  
 _A long, lonely time_  
 _Time goes by so slowly_  
 _And time can do so much_  
 _Are you still mine?_  
 _I need your love_  
 _I need your love_  
 _God speed your love to me."_

As the final verse of the song began to near its end their slow dance came to a stop as they stared at each other. Marco lifted her chin up with his finger and let himself move closer. She closed her eyes as his lips pressed against hers. It was as if life itself was being breathed into her as her cheek marks began to shine and she kissed him back. Her hands wrapped tighter around his neck as he held her by her waist. Her red silk dress only seemed to make the task easier as she wrapped on leg around him. The two slid to the floor and carried on kissing passionately. Marco started to remove his blazer and untie his shirt when he stopped to speak to her.

 **"Star.. I Love You.."** He smiled as she opened her lips to return the feeling when his own voice came from within her.

"STOP MESSING WITH MY MEMORIES!" Yelled the voice as the walls around them seemed to fall down as if it was but a film set. The star lit sky never existed and the music was never played. Darkco looked back down to see he was alone again.

 **"Really had to ruin it at the good part Diaz."** Groaned the inner voice.

"I don't care. Don't you dare mess with my memories! Especially not my memories with Kelly and definitely not any from the year we spent together in that house!" Marco growled inwardly.

Ever since he had first re-established the link with Kelly he'd been worried that Darkco would be able to talk to someone beside himself. Kelly hadn't been able to hear him or their conversations as far as both Diaz's were aware but since his failed attempt to speak to her Darkco had found a new hobby to pass his time. Going into Marco's memories and swapping them out with his own illusions. Deluded is what Marco had called him the first time he had done it. It had been of the Love Sentence concert and instead of kissing Jackie he had turned round, grabbed Star and kissed her. He ignored the protests and tears Jackie shed as he let himself do what he had always wanted to do. Only then had Darkco discovered that doing so would eventually be made aware to Marco as he could feel his memories being tampered with.

 **"What does it matter? You have your fiancée, you have the girl you love by your side but I have nothing. You could at least let a fellow Marco have a bit of happiness in his eternal damnation."**

"We are not fellows Darkco, how many times do I have to tell you that! We are not the same and never will be?"

 **"Of course Mr Perfect. How could I forget that you didn't murder a bunch of innocent people in that death cell to survive. That you didn't taint your blood with that of a monster to make yourself stronger and better. That in the end the people you love aren't suffering in your stead. Admit it Marco. No matter how deluded I may be I can see through this illusion you hide behind. We are the same Marco. We share a fate and a destiny. I may have lost my life but I am here to stay. Unless you find a way to be rid of me or Fate changes her fickle mind."** Darkco explained. Over the time they had been together he hadn't pacified his wish for Marco to see that he became the way he did because the world around him and that Marco would fall just as he did. He'd stopped being so hostile and had rather started enjoying interacting with Marco as it meant escape from the loneliness that faced him within his prison.

Marco on the other hand had grown to despise Darkco with a growing passion. The doppelgänger had access to all his memories and all of his thoughts and didn't mind voicing his twisted opinion on any situation. He'd also, to his own dismay, developed a curiosity to understand him. How someone the same as him could be so different. It was this interaction that brought them to their current situation.

Marco sat waiting patiently inside a hospital waiting area, ignoring Darkco for the last few hours until he had fallen silent. He'd managed to persuade the staff to run all sorts of tests on Janna through his connections he'd made when he'd pitched his 'Magic Medicine' to the various professionals and university professors. They hadn't asked too many questions after taking a look at the boy they had only seen a few weeks previous. He'd aged in his eyes. One particular professor had served in war and knew the look. The look of a man who had killed for duty. He had been the first to grant permission for the tests. The scar that had decorated his eye had nearly healed completely thanks to Toffee's blood but it was still a rather defining wound to a normal human of Earth.

"Why Unchained Melody anyway?" Marco broke the silence to ask Darkco a question.

 **"Pardon? Are you talking to me now?"**

"Yes. Okay, I want to know why you chose the song Unchained Melody?" Marco had been thinking about the question and knew that Darkco knew it too. He was just curious why he chose such a love song.

 **"I remember watching the film Ghost with Mum and Dad. I thought the very idea that love could defy even death was beautiful.."**

"I remember.. I thought they would laugh at me for crying but when I turned round.."

 **"Dad was crying so much that Mum had to hold him. He knew what we now knew. Love is beautiful and love is powerful... I guess maybe I chose it because it's the only song I know that can carry how I feel. My Star is gone. Dead and moved on... I don't even know if the place she moved on to collapsed with my dimension or if it exists out there somewhere but if I can... I will find her and I will..."**

"You will what?"

 **"I'll say goodbye with a smile.."**

"That's it? You don't want forgiveness? A second chance? Or even to be with her?"

 **"How could I ever expect her to forgive me when even you won't? How can anyone forgive me when i cant forgive myself? When I died.. For real. I stood, as you once did, at the balcony and I heard a whisper. "Was it worth it?" I can't say it was real or not but I replied. If i ever got to see her again I'd say goodbye... Like I should have before.."**

"You never really told us what happened to Star.. All the others you told their deaths... But Star you were always vague about.."

 **"...Meteora.. She left her till last. She had already used up all of her energy, her strength and magic.. But she told her to stand. Star did and Meteora pushed some magic back into her... Only enough to re-active the butterfly form.. So plucked her wings from her.. And then stole all of her magic. She lay bleeding on the ground and looked over to me.**

 **"Marco.. I Love You.. Goodbye.." All I had to say was goodbye.. To tell her I loved her... That I'd save her but as Meteora pushed down on her skull killing her all I could do was cry out and scream. If I got the chance I'd just say goodbye.."**

The two returned to silence within his mind. Neither knowing what to say next.

"I'm sorry."

 **"Don't be. You saved yours."**

"It doesn't mean your loss isn't worth anything.."

 **"You don't have time to waste caring about me. Heads up, the nurse is coming back."** Marco shot up and realised he was right as the nurse who had gone off to see if Janna was alright returned to get him.

Marco followed her into a room where a team of specialists waited to give him the results he so desperately wanted. He closed the door behind him and prepared for the worst.

 **/**

"Let me tell you a story.."

"A story as old as time and yet happening as we speak.."

"One day there was a little girl, She like most little girls had a mother and a father. The little girl loved her parents and thought they were like the gods. When she felt sad they would make her smile. When she felt scared they would make the fear go away.. And when she felt lonely they would always appear to save her."

"The family of three once left their home. The girl looked back at the cave they ran from and wondered why her home was being bathed in fire. Her parent's usual smiles were turned upside down and their tears flew behind them. She was scared but they were too.. She was sad but they were too... But she wasn't lonely.. Because they were there too.. At least, they were in the beginning."

 **/**

Marco carried Janna gently in his arms as they headed back through a portal. He placed her gently on her bed and nodded for the others to come in. Jade and Heckapoo were both the first through the door but both fell even further when they realised she still hadn't woken up.

"Why?" Heckapoo began to ask but Jade put his hand to her shoulder. She knew why.

"What can we do next?" Jade asked turning to Marco hopeful that he would have a solution.

"We wake her up.. We let her live the rest of the life she has while we work until there isn't a moment left. There is no technique on Earth or Mewni... Or any dimension we can go to that can fix her. No one has ever seen a case like hers before. Her mind was full of so many memories.. So many beautiful and amazing memories that it overfilled. It broke and now she's left in a time where she felt the safest. Her mind is shielding her. She isn't safe at the age she is but it's all her mind can do from losing all that it has left." Marco explained as he fell back into a chair. The results had proven to be both full of information and nothing. Human science only served to explain what was wrong with her but have no way to help her. Mewman magic had the potential to fix her but.. Time wasn't their friend. Star and Tom had been pouring over every royal archive their kingdoms had to offer. The other royals had done the same but none served to reveal the answer.

Glossaryck had searched back to the creation of magic and found nothing. Any way that would save her meant losing all of her memories... Janna would either be a shell of herself or never be the same again. Marco concluded that there could only be one option. The creation of new magic.

"If only he was here.." Everyone looked up. No one was sure who said it but they all felt the same. If Dox was there he'd find a way. He'd know what to do when no one else knew how. Jade had tried to contact him but the phone no longer rang. He guessed that interfering had cost him talking privileges and hoped to hear from him soon.

"We need to get going.." Tom spoke up to Star. Marco nodded to him and Star. They left reluctantly and started heading down to the main hall.

"So what's the matter?" Star asked as she wrapped her hand around his. Ever since waking up in the medical wing Tom had been quiet. Marco and him had talked it out but Marco wouldn't say what they had talked about.

"I need to tell you something about the Lycanthrope's.."

"What? I thought everything went well with Sun and Luna?"

"It did... But it was us not knowing their culture that was the problem.. Star they swore an oath to me and you. One that promised to protect and serve us as their masters for as long as they live."

"WHAT!" Star stopped him and made him look at her.

"I didn't ask for it and nothing I would have said would have changed their minds."

"So what's the urgent problem?" Star could tell he was only telling her this because it was important now.

"I almost died... You almost died.. I went back as soon as I could when I woke up and the castle was empty. They left... To hunt down the cultists."

"Tom! How comes you haven't said anything! We need to stop them! If we don't it could end up causing war."

"I KNOW STAR! I know... I've been trying but not being found is one of their talents. Trust me we can't find them with a conventional method."

"So where are we going..?"

"To make a promise to the moon." Star wasn't sure where to even start with his comment when he cut open a portal and led them through.

Star looked up and found herself spell bound. Closer than she had ever seen it was the moon. Standing tall in front of a blanket of the brightest stars. She could make out each bump and grove across the moons surface and then turned to find Tom. She couldn't see him but noticed a path and followed it. She walked across the path and realised that aside from the path and the lanterns that lit the way there was nothing beside it. She looked over the edge and realised that there was even more stars below them. She was walking across a path that stood still among the stars.

She walked until she found him standing between an arch. Behind him the moon shone brightly, almost welcoming her. She stood by his side as he looked at her.

"Tom.. Where are we?" She took his hand and noticed that his palms were sweating and that he was shaking.

"When I went to find Marco... When he was taken by Dox I didn't stop at the edge of the land... We searched the seas, the sky and then when we still couldn't find him we searched further... Some Demon's don't need air to breath... Some are even okay in a vacuum. I sent my people into the stars to find him yet he was right beside us all along. Some time when they were searching they found something, something incredible. Small and almost invisible to the naked eye but they found this. An arch in space. A place to view the moon and all that it is." Tom raised his three eyes and gestured to the area around them.

"You mean to tell me we are standing in space?"

"Yes.."

"How are we breathing?"

"I don't know. Star this place defies all logic and reason. It stands still while the world moves around it. I have looked through every ancient text and scroll we have but by all logic this place shouldn't exist. It's a mystery."

"Then why are we here?"

"Because I feel like if we made our promise here... Bathed in the light of the moon and stars. Maybe they will hear our promise and stop what they are doing."

"I don't understand.." Star couldn't work out how making a promise would stop the Lycanthropes from hunting down Luci and the others.

"You don't need to understand that... But please listen to what I'm about to say next.. Please." Tom clicked his fingers and from two small flames beside him he pulled two chairs. Both sat down and Tom took Star's hands in his.

"Star Butterfly, From the very first day I saw you I knew you would be someone amazing. Someone who would change the very world around her. I think from the very first moment when you stepped into my life I have loved you. I use to be nothing but rage and hatred, someone who didn't care for anyone but themselves. You left me because I was a selfish waste of space and I understand that." Tom paused and noticed Star look a little guilty so carried on.

"But you were right. You leaving me and moving on was the right action to take. It took me a while to realise that. It took you leaving the very world we live in and falling in love with Marco for me to realise that if I didn't change I wouldn't ever deserve you. Let alone be able to be with you.

At first I didn't handle that well either but I guess i fell in love with him too. Not the same way of course but he is my best friend. He is the person who I rely on to protect you when I can not. He found the person he loves more than both of us together and I couldn't be happier for him. I told him, the day he got taken by the cult that I wanted to move forward with you. All that time ago... I had this planned... But I guess part of me was still scared.." Tom gulped down and moved his hand into his pocket. He pulled from it a small box and passed it to Star. She stared at it almost afraid to open it before looking up at how nervous her boyfriend was in front of her. Star opened up the box and found a single ring. Unlike everything else Tom loved which was usually over the top and grandiose the ring was simple and almost delicate. Star pulled it from the case and looked at it. The actual ring itself was made of gold, it was a slim band that she knew would be a perfect fit on her finger. The main feature on the ring was a small blue diamond that seemed to have red cracks all around it.

"The diamond is one grown in the underworld. The flames cause the diamond to crack and bleed but it will never break. The 'blood' causes it to become even stronger than it was before. We are a couple who has faced hardship and we have our fair share of cracks... But it's that.. That binds us even stronger together." Tom leant forward and took the ring from her. The box slid from her grip and rolled across the path before falling off into the reaches of space.

"Star, Will you marry me?" Star was speechless and she nodded with tears starting to stream from her eyes. He slid the ring onto her slender finger until it was in place. Star kept staring at it unable to speak when Tom leant forward and kissed her gently on the forehead.

"Thank you so much for loving me Star.." Tom whispered into her ear before holding her tightly in his arms.

 **/**

"The little girl wiped her parents blood from her eyes as she tried to see what had happened before her. She crawled out from under their corpses and began to run from the ever growing flames. Their forms dissolved into the burning light as she was now alone."

"The girl sat alone in the ashes of her land. The people she called her own were dead and the ones who had purged them had moved on. Their thirst for violence not sated they moved on to the next village.. The next land and more."

"The girl felt the cold reach her bones as she hid in the remains of the cave. With no food she had lost all of her weight being reduced to mere flesh and bone. With no possessions she was left in rags and with no one else she had lost all will to live. It was then the little girl heard the voice of god."

 **/**

"But Tom.. What promise were you talking about?" Some time had passed since Tom had gotten his answer and the two had sat silently watching a shooting star pass their view.

"I want to make a promise to you and I want you to return it. I then want us to promise the moon we will be true to our word."

"What is the promise Tom?"

"I, Tom Lucitor, promise, by this love I feel, that I will do what I can to protect the peace we have made and all the smiles we have shared. I will act in such a way that everybody wins. I won't seek vengeance. I won't seek revenge. I will only seek to make tomorrow a brighter day. I promise to build a future of peace, of happiness and of hope. I want the future to be bright, like the moment I first saw you." Tom said with pride and sincerity. His voice was calm and unwavering. Star listened carefully and smiled as she realised he'd added in the promises they made to each other back in the Rose garden maze.

"I, Star Butterfly, by this love I feel promise that I will stand by your side and protect the peace we have made together and the smiles we are yet to share. I will see the end where we are together and the world is bright. Hope, Peace, Love, Happiness and Joy are the ideals I will stand by. I will and do promise to love and hold you and treasure you more than you could ever have believed. I promise to protect you and the very world we live in... Together." The two let the tips of their fingers touch before linking and turning to the moon. They closed their eyes and around them the butterflies and flames of the Bell Ball began to circle them. Their breathing synced together as they opened their eyes and faced the moon before them.

"We, In love and hope, do promise to uphold the vows we have spoken and the wishes we have made. We will act for love, for virtue and for freedom. Peace and happiness will be all we deliver and in the end we will die together in a brighter world. Our hearts are one and we will follow this word. Any who follow behind us do so because they follow the same belief." They finished speaking in unison and watched as the flaming butterflies flew away from them and headed to the moon. Silence started to fall on them when a sudden noise took their attention. Tom started to smile wide as Star looked at him confused.

"They heard us.." Before Star could ask what he meant she heard the howling that he had recognised. It was several voices singing out to the moon in unison. They had heard their vow and were responding in kind. He took her hand and pulled out his scissors when she grabbed them from his hand.

"Star?"

"They'll take a little bit of time to get home... How about we just.. Stay here for a little longer?" Star asked timidly. He had rarely seen her like this but knew it was when she needed him most. They sat back down and he thought of what to say.

"Star, what's wrong?"

"Nothing... I just want this moment to be for us. You've done what you needed to... You protected what we vowed to for now... So can I please... Just sit here with you and think of the ending yet to come.." Her voice cracked as she started to cry.

"Star.." He put his finger under her chin and lifted her head. He moved in slowly, dropping to his knees and pushed his lips against hers.

"We can stay here forever if it's what you wish.."

"Don't tempt me.." They both laughed lightly before holding each other again. They were alone in the stars and it was just right.

 **/**

Higgs punched the bag in front of her letting out all of her frustrations. Her knuckles were red and raw from the hits but she was numb to the pain. She punched again and again until she fell to the floor dripping with sweat. She stood back up and went to punch again only to fall through a portal and land on the floor at the feet of the forger of scissors.

"So this is where you've been hiding?" Heckapoo asked as she leant down to the tired Higgs and ran a finger across her knuckles. She felt Higgs wince from her touch but didn't let go. She got down and laid on the floor beside her looking at the ceiling.

"Hurting yourself won't change anything.." Heckapoo started to say when Higgs threw her towel at her.

"I'm training... I'm not strong enough. I need to get stronger.."

"Higgs... No one expects you to protect everyone.."

"No one has ever expected anything of me.. It's what I expect of myself that matters. I couldn't defend this Kingdom in its time of need. I had to rely on Marco and the Princess to save the day. I couldn't protect or save Marco by myself... He's my squire and my responsibility and I failed him... And I couldn't even protect the people of this kingdom. I trained everyday of my life to defend this kingdom and I have failed at every turn. I need to get stronger... I need to be stronger... If.. If i was stronger then I wouldn't have to lose anyone." Heckapoo turned to look at her. Tears filled her bright green eyes as she grabbed at her short orange hair. She was hurting and they hadn't realised.

"I know how you feel.. It's my job.. My whole reason for existing... To protect magic and this kingdom. I lost to Toffee, to Meteora and I lost the man I love because I was clueless and weak. Now my best friend is in a coma, my other friends are hurting and the girl I consider close enough to be my little sister is hiding away and hurting herself trying to protect us." Higgs looked back at Heckapoo and noticed tears swelling in her eyes too.

"Crystal.. I know you are hurting.. I know you feel weak and not good enough but if it wasn't for you we wouldn't have survived Darkco, we wouldn't have rescued Marco and we wouldn't have accomplished anything we set out to achieve. I started 'Each Their Own Paradox' to let the children who would have died forgotten be given the chance to have a future. I thought with ideals alone I could change the world like no one did for him but I couldn't. Do you want to know what gives those children strength? Do you want to know who they look up to? Is it the Earth Hero or the Magic Princess? No... It's the Knight of the Crescent Moon. The female hero of Mewni. A Knight from rags who was the first of the outer circle to reach that peak, the first student of the magic school and the best pupil there. You are a hero to the people, a goal they can reach. Don't push yourself out of their reach, one of us needs to keep the rest grounded." Higgs turned away from her to hide the smile on her face.

"You know I hate being called that.."

"What? Your name? It's a beautiful name for a beautiful girl.."

"Careful.. With lines like that you might end up breaking some hearts."

"There's the Crystal Higgs I know. Now how's about you let me get a look at those hands and we get ourselves off the floor?"

Heckapoo sat up and offered her hand to Higgs. The girl was hesitant to return the action but couldn't refuse in the situation. Heckapoo cut open a small portal and pulled out some ointment and bandages.

"The old fashioned way?" Higgs said with a smile. Heckapoo didn't look up to reply but instead started to tend to her wounds. She used the ointment to wash away the dirt and dust from the wound before wrapping the bandage around her hand. She tied it off nicely then tucked it inside itself so it wouldn't come undone.

"Sometimes it's better to let things happen naturally."

"Strange for someone from the Magical High Commission to have that view point? What's on your mind?" Heckapoo paused in thought as Higgs' words ran through her mind.

"I guess... I'm not sure of anything anymore. A few years ago, before Dox and before Marco, I understood my role and this world. Magic was limitless and the world was a good place. The future of Mewni was uncertain only due the childishness of the Princess. I was focused on my work and occasionally would attend meetings at the High Commission but that was all... Now.. We have to redefine the limits of magic... It's not limitless but the limit can be broken. Incurable wounds and death can be reversed. Gods exist and toy with our lives and dimensions I've never even believed in now dictate my life. It all got so confusing and so convoluted that I'm struggling to keep up with life itself." Heckapoo threw the items back through the portal before standing up and walking to a window nearby. She looked out into the garden it showed and felt akin to the view. A wilted tree being bathed in the setting sun. It had all it needed to get by but it is still at it's end. She felt a hand hesitantly reach for her shoulder. Heckapoo turned to see Higgs looking at the ground, her face conflicted.

"Crystal?"

"Make it simple.." Higgs whispered to her.

"What do you mean?"

"Make it simple Heckapoo. You are so bothered by all the changes and what was that you are blinding yourself to what is and what's to come."

"Then how do I fix that?"

"Forget what you cannot fix... I never met Dox. Not once so it may be easy for me to say this but at the moment he isn't what matters. Janna is. Focus on her and what's about to happen." Heckapoo frowned when she mentioned Dox but felt a nagging feeling in her heart that Higgs was right.

"And what's about to happen?"

"What ever we let happen. There's someone out there who has caused all of this. Whether it's this so called God or his green haired apostle that is doing his bidding. We can stop her. We can end this war before it even begins. We can save Janna and live the lives we are suppose to lead." Higgs lifted her head and looked out into the garden. The sun had fallen and taken the light with it.

"So we are just meant to forget those we left behind and move on?"

"If you want to win... Yes.."

"Winning isn't everything?"

"Losing isn't either."

"Higgs... I don't know what exactly I'm suppose to do..."

"Come with me... I want to show you something.." Higgs grabbed Heckapoo's hand and led her from the training room. The sandbag carried on swinging as the door closed behind them.

 **/**

"The God asked the little girl why she cried. The little girl replied 'Because I've lost everyone.' The God then asked why she had lost everyone but the little girl didn't understand the question.

"Why did you allow the world to take everyone?"

"I didn't know how to stop it..."

"I will teach you child." The God took the little girl from the ashes of the cave and she disappeared from existence itself for 200 years.

The girl, now older and in her teens, reappeared in the world. She walked among the peaceful people until she found the people she was looking for. It was a family of three. A mum, dad and their daughter. They were the descendants of those who had killed her own family and she was here for revenge. The girl had awoken a special power from the God and used this power as she killed the mother and father. The little girl cried as her parents were slain before her eyes but the girl just laughed.

She had gotten her revenge but that wasn't enough. She pinned the blame on another of the descendants who then started to fight the system. A single act that led to a war between people. The girl disappeared again as her God welcomed her home.

 **/**

Jade rubbed his sore eyes as fatigue continued to plague him. He ran his hand across his face in a desperate attempt to keep himself wide awake. He had black bags under his eyes and his throat was dry. His stomach growled at him for attention but he continued to ignore his own body and it's demands. He took Janna's pale hand into his own and squeezed tightly. Hoping that somehow the warmth from his own hand would reach her. His blue hair had grown outward and now started to cover his eyes as he let them cast further shadows on his face. His heart mark on his cheek appeared to be cracked but it was a scratch he had obtained in the fight against the cultists. Marco had offered to heal it but he decided it should remain that way for as long as Janna remained broken.

Jade stood up and made his way to the bathroom. He looked in the mirror and was aware of why he left it. A reminder that he hadn't been able to protect her at all. She had died under his watch and was now in this state. He had robbed his friend of his mortality but hadn't been able to honour his request to protect them all. Jade punched the mirror in frustration and twitched as he realised a shard of the glass had gone in his hand. He looked at it with mild curiosity as the blood ran down his arm. He picked up a bigger shard of glass and twirled it in his fingers. If he could be wounded by something this fragile how could he protect them all. He concentrated his magic in his palm and made it envelope his hand before thrusting the shard into it. The shard shattered into pieces the moment it came into contact with his magic and he healed his hand before cleaning up the glass. He sat back beside Janna and pulled out his mobile. He scrolled down to Dox again and tried to call but once again got a tone for an incorrect number.

"It's horrible when you can't reach him... Isn't it?" Jade looked up to see the aquamarine haired girl looking over him. Kelly wandered into the room and looked into the bathroom at the mirror.

"..I slipped.."

"Really? Is that why your hand is bleeding?" Jade shot a glance at his hand and noticed that she was right. His magic may have destroyed the shard but it had still cut him. He went to heal it when Kelly grabbed his hand. She squeezed it tight and his blood dripped down into a jar she held.

"What are you-"

"Doing?.. Well collecting your blood." She said as matter of fact as she could.

"Why are you taking my blood?" Jade asked as she let go. He healed his hand and looked up to see her swirling his blood around the glass.

"I wanted it for an enchantment. I don't know if Marco ever told you but the blood of really powerful magic users can be very useful in enchantments. I actually once used my own blood to make him a ring that would change into a knife. I think it got taken from him when he was captured but it was a present I made with Dox's help." Kelly remembered the time at the lake with his family and smiled.

"So what enchantment do you want my blood for?"

"A protective rune is often more powerful when there's a powerful feeling behind it. I want to make something to protect Janna and the blood of the powerful mage who loves her seems like a useful competent if you ask me." Kelly chuckled.

"You could have asked."

"True, I was planning to but you saved me the effort when you shoved that glass into you hand."

"You saw?"

"No but I know what self harm looks like. I'm not sure what you were trying to prove but hurting yourself won't help anyone."

"I just wanted to see how weak I really am.."

"That's all?"

"Yes.."

"Then come with me. I think I have just the thing for you." Before Jade had a chance to refuse a black portal opened up beneath them both with a wave of her hand. Jade fell to the ground, groaning in pain. The black sand that he landed on was warm to the touch and he raised his head to see a yellow lake beside them.

"Where are we?"

"Lake Lava Beach. It's in the underworld. It's quite a good place for working out some issues and for sparring on."

"Sparring? You want to fight?"

"Why not?"

"That won't achieve anything?"

"You wanted to see how weak you really are? SOOOOOOOO Stand up before I make you!" Kelly smiled as Jade gave her a complex look. His interactions with the girl hadn't always been the most fruitful and honestly had begun to see her more as Marco's partner than an individual. Jade went to stand up when a sharp kick to the ribs send him flying across the beach and crashing into the lake. He shot out of the water gasping for air and clutching his side which creaked from the pain.

"What was that fo-" Before he could finish he was forced to duck under the water as a streak of flames flew past his head. He concentrated his magic and burst from the water. He had taken his angelic form and looked down upon Kelly as she dug the last of a set of swords into the sand. The clear sands were now littered with swords, spears and other weapons which had come from her hair.

Jade raised his hand to fire a beam of magic at her when a chain wrapped around his wrist and with her overpowering strength she span him in the air before slamming him into the ground. He went to get up when she flew past him cutting at his ankle. The blade she had used clearly had an ice enchantment as his feet was frozen to the ground. Before he could do anything a large hammer swung towards him sending him flying across the sand and bouncing across it's surface. He raised a shield around him to get a chance to breath while healing his wounds. He couldn't see her and started to scan the beach when he fell through the ground and into the air. He acted on instinct to catch a spear that was thrown at him before it exploded in his hands sending him back to the ground. He groaned in pain as he put his hand down to push himself up only to have a sword placed through it.

"So... Realised how weak you are yet?" Jade looked up to see Kelly frowning at him. She sat down next to him and then hit him lightly on the head.

"You aren't anything special. None of us are. We are all weak and we will all fail... But that's okay... The greatest person I ever met was the biggest loser and the most weak person there ever could be... And he was incredible. Being weak isn't the problem, being content with it is." Kelly pulled the sword from his hand and passed him the jar. He sat up and held his hand over it draining his blood into it.

"I couldn't protect her... I couldn't protect anyone."

"And you think any of us have? We are all just struggling to get by. I almost ruined my relationship with Marco because I didn't feel good enough and it's Marco I'm dealing with. Can you imagine what Janna would say if she saw you acting like this?" Jade started to laugh which caused Kelly to raise her eye brow at him.

"She'd probably hit me and say I'm an idiot. That she leads her own life and it's nothing to do with me. Instead of crying about what I couldn't do I should brag about what I could."

"She is a very special lady."

"You got that right... I just need her to be okay. I know it seems stupid given everything you lot have been through before I came along but I'm not sure I can fight and try to save a world without her. I'm not meant to be a hero... I'm a sidekick." Jade healed his hand again and passed her the full jar. He thought back to the role he assumed when he came here. He was meant to support the main cast in their endeavours and help them along to finish the story. He still saw it like some novel or television programme that wouldn't affect him but then he fell in love. He lost the life he knew and the one he had lost it for was now out of his reach.

"You are being an awful sidekick.."

"What?" Jade asked bemused.

"I watched some earth shows with Marco when we went to visit his family and we watched a few with Dox and from what I saw the sidekick is the vibrant and cheerful support for the hero. You are there to be a moral compass and that little bit extra that keeps them going. To fail and learn your lesson by the time the story is done. If you really want to be her sidekick then you need to realise that you failing is okay. If you never fall how can you learn to stand back up." Jade took her words to heart and stared off into the lake in thought. He chuckled as he realised she was right.

"I'm colourful at least.."

"That you are!" Kelly laughed at his silver lining.

"How do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"How are you still so full of hope?"

"I'm not. I'm scared every day that everything I've worked so hard to achieve will fail. I'm scared that the people I love will disappear and I'll lose Marco and that kills me inside. I think the reason I come across that I'm full of hope is because of Marco and everyone else. Marco gives me the strength to fight on. He was willing to throw everything away to protect me and be with me so I think i should fight for that. If I gave in and let him down then I don't deserve to be with him. I need to be strong, I need to carry on because if i don't how can I have the things I want."

"So there is no special secret... We are weak.. And we just have to learn to live with that?"

"There's nothing wrong with it. We find strength in others that we couldn't in ourselves. I just kicked your ass but it doesn't mean you are weak. It just means we are stronger together."

"That doesn't really make sense."

"It doesn't need to Jade... Now how's about we get you a hot meal and a change of clothes. To be frank you look like crap and are starting to smell as well." Kelly waved her hand and the two dropped into the Parahouse. Jade sniffed at his top and drew back quickly when he smelt himself. He looked up as she threw a towel and some clothes at him. He looked down at the red tie and the jacket and ran his hands across them slowly. He made a promise and it was about time he sorted himself out and kept it. Kelly held her hand to her heart and thought out loud.

 _"I did it. I think he'll be okay now. You really seem to care about him?"_

 _"Yeah, we bonded a lot when we were trapped before. He reminds me of Dox but more so of myself before Dox. Insecure and naïve. He's strong and will be amazing some day but in reality he's like a child to all of this. He didn't spend time with others growing up and I'm not even sure how old he is... I mean if time isn't a concept where he came from he could be decades if not centuries old but have the experience of a toddler with people. He doesn't even seem to understand his feelings all that well. He's afraid... And I can't just leave him alone."_ Marco's voice resounded in her head.

 _"I love that side of you. I'll keep an eye on him and make sure he rests. I think we still have some of the sleeping medicine Dox used to spike us with to raise our tolerance. I doubt he's got any resistance with it so I'll let you know when he wakes up. Good Luck."_

 _"Thanks Kelly.. If this works I will definitely owe you one.."_

 _"And the others too. Higgs and Tom both agreed to keep everyone away from the room. I'm not sure what they're planning on doing but it should just be you there now."_

 _"That's true... Anyway I'm gonna need to concentrate now... I love you.."_

 _"I Love you too.. I believe in you Marco.. I always have and always will... You can do this."_ Kelly heard nothing more in her head so headed to the kitchen to start cooking. She heard the shower upstairs and smiled. She clicked the button to block out the outside world on the remote and began to decide what to cook.

 **/**

"The God had helped her with her problem and she was happy. She wanted to repay the God but was unsure how when she noticed one of the 'others' had taken on an Apostle. The blue haired child seemed to enjoy serving his master and it made her happy. That would be her answer."

"Serving the God was no easy feat. He demanded much from her and the powers gifted to her. She would do what she had done for herself and be the spark that began the war. Her master enjoyed the violence and the death and it made her happy to see him smile. She started to relish the sight of blood and the sounds of clashing metal. It became almost like a lullaby to her."

"She had attacked the blue haired Apostle and left a mark beneath his eye. The other had grown angry and had tried to end her but her master had protected her. He was happy with her. The other covered the wound with a small blue heart and erased the incident from his mind. She was to stay by her God and only leave to do his bidding."

"Much time passed, countless time. She had enjoyed her latest conquest. She would sometimes turn into a monster to attack a person or turn into a person to attack a monster. Form meant little to her now she had forgotten what she once was. She decided to take on the form of the little girl whose parents she had killed. She had waited for the little girl to grow up and have a child of her own and then repeated the process. For generations she had killed the parents of the child in front of them. It had been her personal hobby to some degree. The only remnant of her original form were the green hair and green eyes she was born with."

"Her God was angry. Someone else had intervened with his plans. Another of the 'others' had decided that his path was wrong and had foolishly tried to alter the course of time. She grew angry alongside him and in her wraith she found a crack, a small tear in the fabric of reality and what she saw was beautiful. Her plans.. His plans were going right there, it was the original timeline where the others 'corrections' never took place. She realised something and consulted her God. They could use this to their own advantage."

 **/**

Marco stood over Janna with a knife in hand. He was hesitating to do what was necessary and started to breath deeply hoping to calm himself down. He cut his fingers and drew some runes down her arms and across her face. He healed his fingers and set down the knife.

 **"This is a mistake."**

"Shut up. We're through talking Darkco. Unless you have something useful to say how's about you be quiet." Marco muttered aggressively. He was struggling to do what needed to be done as it was and didn't want to be told it was a mistake.

 **"You are about to take the life she has fought for from her."**

"To save her life I need to restore her to a point before all of this."

 **"And then what? Hide her from the others and hope they don't notice the Janna sized hole in your story?"**

"Why are you even talking? You tried... You did kill Janna in your own timeline. You don't care about her or any of this." Marco scowled. He regretted talking to him in the hospital now. The more they spoke the less like the monster who killed his mentor Darkco seemed and more like a misguided version of himself. Marco finally understood Fate's words to him. 'He is every part the champion you are', 'Such a shame to see him like this..' 'He is no longer a threat to you.' Marco had questioned her words at the time but the more they spoke the more he understood. Darkco was him, Marco hated to admit it but it was true, he had lived his life the same as him until the day it all went wrong and without Meteora's curse and the magic blood driving him insane he was just another Marco, except one who was willing to get his hands dirty.

 **"She was better off dead... Everyone she had loved and had supported her were either dead or no longer the person she needed. I'm not going to pretend to be a saint or pretend that I didn't do wrong Marco but face facts here. I'm the evil one and I think this is wrong, shouldn't that be a tell tale sign to you that something is wrong. My Janna wanted me and her to forget everything and move on with our lives but yours doesn't. I didn't let mine do what she wanted but I think you should."**

"I don't understand you. Why are you trying to help me!"

 **"I told you. The more I help the less time I have to watch you waste your life. The less time I have to waste watching you ruin every good thing you have. You are a pathetic and miserable excuse of a person but you are the person I am stuck with. I hate you and everything you are because you are me. I hate myself. I hate that I was so weak and that I couldn't protect the people important to me. Marco, I've told you time and time again... We are the same. You just need to know that no matter what happens you will end up the same way I did if you don't choose your actions wisely."**

"FUCK OFF! I'VE TOLD YOU EVERYTIME WE ARE NOT THE SAME! HOW DELUDED ARE YOU!"

 **"Murderer? Check. Cursed Blood? Check. About to take away someone else's future because you think you know better? Check. Marco face it. You are about to do what I would have done and that doesn't help anyone."**

"I am **NOT like you** I am Marco Ubaldo **Diaz** of Earth. I am a good person and **I will never be like you."** Marco was panting heavily. He had started to find breathing harder. Beads of sweat dripped from his brown hair and his olive skin had grown red as he clutched onto his heart.

 **"Can you hear yourself? Can you really hear yourself? You know the saying Marco. You either die the hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain. You are changing and you know it. Us being together like this should have cemented how much you hate me in your mind and heart but I can feel it you know. You don't want to find peace in the end you want revenge. You want to kill the people who caused this. You want to give into the darkness and hunt them down. You want blood."**

"How could you possibly know that!" Marco's vision had started to blur as he struggled to stand. He wasn't sure what was happening to him and didn't care. He was so angry from his talk with Darkco that he didn't care. He wasn't like him. He wasn't. He was doing the right thing and he would prove to him that he was right.

 **"Because the more you fall to darkness the more I'm exposed to the light. Fate told you. Didn't she. We are bound by balance and by a scale. You haven't realised that I'm not becoming more good but you are falling to evil. If you fall Marco what will your friends do? What will I do? I will not be able to watch you turn out like me like you couldn't watch me be me. It's an impossibility. One must be dark and one must be light. One must be good and one must be bad. One seeks revenge and one seeks justice... You are not the one who should be seeking revenge. That's me."**

"Are you **actually complaining** because you're turning into a better person! **You should** be thanking me! **Why** should I care what **you** think?" Marco's voice was growing dry. He had to do the ritual now or it would be too late.

 **"If you don't want to admit it... It's fine.. I understand how hard it is to see** how broken you've become. **Marco... I'm sorry but this is going to** _hurt."_ Marco dropped the knife and fell to his knees screaming as his mind began to break. It was like his mind was splitting open and he felt every second of it. Blood started to ooze from his eyes and nose as he banged his head against the ground. He ran and smashed his head into the wall. Blood poured from his head as his left iris began to flicker between red and blue. Marco went to grab for the knife with his left hand when his right stopped him. He looked down confused when his right fist flew at his face and knocked him out.

Darkco stood up and looked around. He muttered a small incantation and all the blood that now was sprayed around the room was sucked back into his body and his wounds healed. He may not have studied healing magic as much as Marco but he knew how to stay whole. He kicked the knife under the bed and walked to be by Janna's side. He stroked her hair and moved the few strands that had gotten out of place back to where they should be.

 **"How amusing we find ourselves together like this Janna. Only less than a year ago did I celebrate the thought of having killed you and yet here I am as the one to save you. Don't resent Marco for his methods, he just didn't understand the implications of what he would have done. I find myself growing to resent myself more with each moment he falls to darkness. You all haven't noticed yet but the cult's corruption of his mind is more successful than first believed. Maybe it is my fault for forcing him to get back up by trying to kill and being willing but I never thought he'd honestly fall like this. This is only the beginning.. He needs you to keep him from going down a bad path. You were always there for me when we were younger. You'd tease me and get me to make a fool of myself in front of anyone who tried to be my friend who would have led me astray. You stopped me hanging with the wrong crowds and always made me aware of what was right and wrong. I need you to do it for him like you never have before Janna... Huh.. I've talked for too long... I can't keep him out for too long... It is his body after all."** Darkco got a cloth and wiped the blood runes off of her and made sure any traces were gone before holding his palm over her forehead.

 **"It's a good thing I've gotten a lot of practice at manipulating memories lately. Seems like every does indeed happen for a reason. Let's get started."** Light began to pour out from Darkco's palm and invade Janna's mind as her eyes flew open.

 **/**

"The God and the Green Haired girl sat back and watched as the hero died and the world fell to darkness. They celebrated and cheered when something unpredictable happened. Something beyond all the god's plans happened. The mortals broke time itself to correct the changes they had made. The other's champion, her apostle was created from their deeds. He came, he died and he succeeded. She witnessed new wrath in her God as he lashed out. He was angrier than he had ever have been. It was not a God that had thwarted his plans and ruined his fun but measly mortals. She would fix this. She would make it right again."

"To bend the will of the arrogant had been easy for her. It was almost too easy to point the finger of hatred at this point. War was a game and she was the best player on the board. Two cults, one agenda, War."

"The Apostle of Fate intervened again. He is ruining my plan. He is ruining everything. My God is unaware of my actions. He lost interest in the story but no one knows that. I will correct the world and return the smile to him. In a bath of blood and a rain of fire I will restore the darkness, restore the end as the world falls to war. I will find him and end him."

"The Apostle escaped. He used the strange house against me but he is bleeding. He seeks refuge with the other of love. It was easy to fake his note. To take his form and leave a note to his fool of a God. I may not be able to find Love but Fate can. I will follow Fate, I will end her Apostle and I will have my end. The trap is set and the bait is ready. The story will end with death."

"I have found him. Fate went straight to Love but the Apostle hadn't made it yet. He is alone and vulnerable. I will take him for now. I will use him before the end. What will the mortal pests do for their fallen Apostle... I wonder?... I have a plan. I will make them sacrifice themselves and destroy all that they love. Fate means nothing and Love is worthless... All that matters is conflict. All that matters is War. I am the Apostle. I am the Harbinger. I am War."

* * *

 **/**

 **A/N: Up late to get this posted X'D Kind of rushed so if you spot any bad mistakes please let me know. If you enjoyed please leave a review and let me know.**


	11. Time Moves On

**Keeping Your Promise#11  
**

 **Time Moves On.**

* * *

"Oh, my love, my darling

I've hungered for your touch." Marco shot up as he heard a soft voice singing beside him. He looked up to see Janna awake in bed. He could see how tired she was from her eyes. Yet somehow it seemed like she was more herself than before.

"Janna?" He asked shocked. His head was killing him with agony and his vision was blurry. Marco tried to make sense of what was happening.

"Hello! You are my Marco grown up... Aren't you? It wasn't that you were pretending to look older but you pretended to look young again." Janna smiled at him as she threw a ball of magic between her hands. She seemed captivated by the magic and her voice was calm. Something still seemed wrong however.

"Janna.. How old are you? What happened?" Marco asked confused as he looked at the time. He'd blacked out 12 hours ago.

"Well I was 8 but now I'm 13. The other you was fixing me while you were sleeping. He said you'd been up for days trying to help me." Janna explained again. Marco was disturbed by how casually she summed up the situation. Like the first time you hear a child say something dark and twisted and you realise innocence ends up being an illusion we choose to hide behind.

"What did he do? The other me?" Marco questioned impatiently. He could recall the fight and struggle he had with Darkco before losing consciousness. His head still hurt but he had none of the blood that was pouring from his every orifice hours before. He glanced at Janna and noticed the blood runes had been cleaned off of her, Marco was too ashamed to ask if she had done so herself or if Darkco had done that too.

"...He's sorting through my memories and filing them. He said that my mind had grown full and he could fix it. If he got rid of memories that didn't mean anything and were just taking up space I could return to my proper age. The more he 'condenses' the more I age. 5 years went by so fast and so much happened to us... I can't believe you still never spoke to Jackie.. And I.. I.. Tried to end it.." Janna looked at her wrists and at faded scars before looking back up to Marco. He was trying to understand what was happening when she put her hand on his cheek forcing him to acknowledge her.

"Is he hurting you..?" Marco's voice was quiet, like a child afraid of the answer to the very question they had just asked.

"No.. He's helping... But he told me what you wanted to do to me Marco. You were going to erase my memories and leave me behind." Janna's hand started to shake a little. She wasn't sure yet what had led to her being so broken, she had a few more years to age for that but no matter what happened to be left behind by him would break her. When the other Marco had told her she felt like her scars were burning, like every word he had told her that gave her strength could have become a lie. He was going to wipe her mind and leave her back on earth, never able to be the girl she once was again.

"...I'm sorry.. I shouldn't have done that... I don't know why I ever thought it would be a good idea." Marco finally started to think about what he was planning to do. He had been numb to the consequences and to the gravity of what he had been about to do and it all seemed to sink in at once. Tears started to run across his face as he realised he would have essentially ended the Janna he knew. He would have killed the Janna Ordonia that everyone had grown to love and cherish. The strange and unexplainable girl left with nothing, nothing but regret.

"Oh.. Marco. Don't cry.. Look, you stopped yourself didn't you? I don't really get how there's two of you but I'm cool with that. I always said the world could use more Marco in it.."

"He's not me.." Marco's tears fell heavier as the guilt grew more. He whispered his denials to himself refusing to accept what he had been about to do, The unthinkable, and the only reason he hadn't is because Darkco intervened.

"Really? He seemed like you... Just.. Troubled. It doesn't matter Marco, We're together and that's what matters! I told you when we started 8th Grade and each one before it. I will be by your side watching over you and bugging you until we are corpses in the ground and then I'll haunt you too. I don't want to dabble in it too much but that witch stuff the foreign exchange student you have showed me was quite interesting. Can you imagine me as a witch? I'd be awesome." Marco laughed through his tears as she started to talk about what her powers would be. He remembered when she had started to really get into the occult stuff. She had pretended not to care about it but she loved it. The more she could learn the better. She started getting reckless later into the year and would camp out in a graveyard. She got scared when someone started to watch her so he'd come and sit with her. They'd sit together staring at the moon as it lit up the graveyard. He heard her laugh and noticed she'd moved onto what she would wear. She had never changed who she was or who she wanted to be. She set a goal and would reach for it. She decided to be a witch and all it took was magic becoming reality and crossing dimensions to do it but she did it.

"And I'd need a cool name.. The poison witch? The witch of darkness? The night mistress..." Janna kept listing when Marco spoke without thinking.

"The Witch of Toxic Night..." Janna's eyes lit up with joy as she grabbed his hands. Her smile so innocent it seemed to compel his heart to quiver just seeing how warmly she looked at him.

"That's it! That's the name I want! I want to be Lady Janna, The Witch of Toxic Night!" She laughed loudly by his side as she kept imagining her then impossible dream. The Janna who had only just begun to see the worlds mysteries and the joy hidden within them.

"Janna.." Marco waited for her to respond but froze when she didn't. Her face seemed like it had been paused as she remained still. Her eyes seemed lifeless as he looked into them. They had glazed over, as if she were dreaming with them open. He felt his blood run cold as he began to imagine the worst.

"Janna?" He asked again nervously. He was scared to touch her, afraid he'd only end up hurting her.

"Oh Hey Marco? So you really never did speak to Jackie.. Why did I wait all those years if you were just going to nod your head? I'm guess I'm glad Star came along though.." Janna's smile faded as time moved on. She seemed to lose some of the sparkle in her eyes as her smile turned into a frown.

"What.. What happened?"

"I grew up... I'm at the time when Star came into our lives. She's amazing.. I take it we are in Mewni from the room's design. That or you've kidnapped me and taken me to an ancient castle. We end up going on adventures with her?"

"Yeah that's right we-"

"Don't say more than you need to.. I want to enjoy these last moments while they are still here.."

"Last moments? What do you mean?"

"The more i remember the more it hurts... We never change.. You never change.. You still hide behind your safe kid persona and you never let the world see how amazing you are. You.. Why? Why do you keep trying to be someone in the background when you are a hero Marco? I know Star's getting you out and about but why did it take a magical princess for you to be yourself?" Marco's heart stopped when he realised she was right. He had been doing the same routine time and time again, it was one of the more crushing parts of adventuring with Star when he became aware of how he'd been stuck doing the same thing for years. For Janna she was in that moment and it hurt. She'd never spoken about this to him because she'd never had the chance. This was Janna witnessing her whole life in moments and his life beside it.

"I didn't have the final push I needed Janna... You helped make me into the hero i am today.. But it took a lot more than it should have.."

"It was painful... Wasn't it.."

"Yes.."

"You lost people.."

"Yes..."

"You were going to become the very thing we hated to save me... Even if it meant betraying Star and me?" Janna asked with a frown. Marco hung his head in shame as she continued to question him.

"Yes.."

"Am I happy?"

"Pardon?"

"Is the me I'm becoming happy?"

"Yes.. You have a best friend who would tear apart reality to protect you, a guy who loves you enough to break the laws of life to have you by his side and you have me, Star and everyone else."

"I remember them... From when I was 8... I remember the demon lady and the others.. The boy with the blue hair?"

"Yes... His name is Jade, well Vu Jade Agape.."

"That's a really dumb name.."

"Oh you have no idea.. It can mean Love not seen before... And that's what it was to you. You fell in love with him and changed his world. He was turning himself into skin and bone sitting by your side. He wouldn't leave you.. Not for a moment. We had to kidnap and drug him to get him to sleep."

"Kidnap and drugging! Wow.. Marco, what happened to my beautiful baby boy.." Janna chuckled but stopped when he was giving her a stern look.

"He grew up.. To protect the people he loved. You included."

"Okay.. Sorry.. Can you tell me about Jade?" Marco nodded and started to tell her about his encounters with the boy. He left out a lot of the worst details as she would come to know them by herself. She laughed when he told her how naïve the boy was and how easily she toyed with him. She smiled when he told her about how he could be stubborn and brave. How he would do anything to show how much he loved her. How she had basically started a relationship with her student. She even remarked that it was indeed scandalous. As they were talking she paused several more times until finally she looked at him with familiar eyes.

"...I'm me again.."

"That's brilliant!" Marco exclaimed with joy loudly as Janna remained with a grimace.

"Is it? Darkco is back and you haven't told anyone? He's in my head and he's fixed me but what now? Do i lose all my memories again? Do i repeat this until the day I die? Am I meant to be a flip book of my life and a burden to everyone? I caused so much grief for everyone and I hurt you all because I didn't want to bother you. I am an idiot and a burden. He was right... Darkco was right when he said that maybe I should have ended it before i could become the burden I am today." Marco was about to yell at her and tell her she was speaking nonsense when he noticed the trickle of blood running from her nose. He leant forward and touched the blood making her notice it. She looked at him in confusion as his head started to ring out and pain enveloped him again.

 **"Did you miss me?"** Darkco's voice rang out inside his head as the pain settled. Marco didn't get the chance to be angry at him as Janna began to shake and foam from her mouth. Her body moved violently as he went to hold her.

 **"DON'T! Don't touch her!"**

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER!" Marco yelled out in rage.

 **"I fixed her. She was right, it would be a temporary solution so I made it permanent. Humans were thought to use 10% of their brains but that's a myth. Human's use MOST of their brain MOST of the time. However there is a truth that we don't use it all at once. I broke that limit, Janna now has full access to her brain and it's functions. The excess memories now have somewhere to go. I'd not encourage spending that amount of time alive but she could potentially remember maybe another 500 years of memories. If she is careful she will never experience this problem again. No need to thank me."** Marco was silent. Janna had stopped fitting and had calmed down. She wasn't conscious any more but she was stable. He ran his hand over her mind and felt the activity was normal.

"You took over my body. You used me!"

 **"I was joking. Thank me you bastard. I did what you could not. I saved her when all of you and your pathetic group of failures could not."**

"...I will never turn to darkness.. I will never be like you and I will not ever let you take control of me again."

 **"Good. Be Good. That's all you should ever strive for but it's not that easy to deny yourself. The darkness is within you and it will come again. Don't forget that... Now if you don't mind you ungrateful piece of shit... I'm tired... Really tired... I need to sleep now... But I'll be back.."**

Silence fell once more in the room.

From within his prison Darkco cut the link to Marco's mind, it was as simple as tearing his eyes away from the screen he watched out of. Once the link was broken he fell to the floor in agony, coughing blood into his hands. His lungs felt like their were burning as his heart seemed to pump nothing but pain throughout him. He grabbed at his hair as the pain coursed through his brain. His joints, his muscles and every fibre of his body was in torturous agony.

"So dead men do bleed... Noted." He pushed himself up enough to crawl over to the corner of his box. The cold floor seemed to burn his skin as he dug his nails into it. He looked down as he reached the corner, curled up and vunerable, his nails were falling out and blood poured from his fingers. His efforts to save Janna had rewarded him with pain, bleeding and a pulsing agony that wouldn't leave him. There was no comfort here, not even a bed. It would hurt if he slept in the chair so the floor was good enough. Darkco closed his eyes and for the first time since he was trapped he fell asleep. No thoughts or nightmares, just rest.

Fate walked into the room and looked down at the sleeping boy. She looked around the room hoping, just hoping that he had managed to find his way to this prison. Unfortunately for her, her prisoner was alone. She peered at the blood on the floor and then at him. His soul was damaged further than even she thought possible but it had grown lighter. If he carried on like it he may regain his light but in doing so condemn himself to beyond the beyond. She walked over and eased a little of his pain, enough that it wouldn't drive him insane again. Looking around once more she hoped that somehow she missed her other ward but he was no where to be seen. She glided from the room leaving Darkco once again alone within the darkness.

/

Higgs knocked lightly on the rotting door and waited patiently for a response. Heckapoo looked around as they stood waiting, The building was old and crumbling to pieces. The door was nothing more than a plank of wood held in place by some rusty nails. They had walked from the portal and into the worst area of Mewni. Marco had compared it to slums back on earth where humanity had been forgotten and the people abandoned by history. Higgs had thought it seemed accurate but hadn't wanted to admit it to him. A slow set of footsteps approached the door before a feeble looking woman peered round the plank.

The woman had white hair with a streak of orange running down some strands. It was around the length of her shoulders but a mess that seemed to have been given up on. Her slightly-dark cream coloured skin seemed more aged than her already old body seemed to be. Her clothes resembled rags more than anything and all Heckapoo could see was poverty. Her mind raced about how a place like this could still exist in the kingdom.

The elderly woman raised her head enough to take one look at the pair before dropped to her knees in front of them.

"Lady Heckapoo and Lady Higgs, I apologise for the untidiness of my appearance. I hope I do not bring you shame and if so I shall give my life in hopes you forgive me." The lady's head was so low on the ground that her forehead was touching the dirt. Heckapoo felt sick to the stomach imagining how low someone must think of themselves to say such words but her attention was drawn to Higgs, tears built up in her green eyes as her cheeks seemed to flush red with anger.

"...Why? Why do you do this every time I come here!?" Higgs grabbed the woman and easily lifted her frail body to her feet. She shook the woman hoping to make her see sense but it only ended having the opposite effect.

"I apologise. Forgive me. I'm sorry. Please forgive me." The elderly lady cried out. Heckapoo wasn't sure what to do, she wasn't even sure why Higgs had brought them there when Higgs spoke again.

"Mum... Please." The woman froze as if she had been stabbed in the heart with a frozen dagger. She stopped resisting Higgs and instead turned her gaze away from her. Heckapoo, for the first time, got a real look at her eyes, the same emerald green as Higgs. On her cheeks were faded freckles, Heckapoo almost could see her looking like an older Higgs and seemed to wonder why she hadn't noticed straight away.

"I apologise.. you must have me mistaken with someone else. I have no children, not anymore." The rage on Higgs face seemed to explode as she started to shake from being overwhelmed with the emotion.

"Can we take this inside?" Heckapoo interrupted, noticing that there were eyes starting to take notice of their visit. The elderly lady nodded and once free from Higgs' grip led them inside.

The inside seemed worse than the outside, a scenario Heckapoo hadn't thought possible. The furniture was either rotten or broken. The woman seemed to live alone in the two bedroom home. She led them into the sitting room, or what had to be the only room with chairs. They all sat down and silence followed.

"Well Mum... I told you I'd be back and here I am, I brought a friend this time. Please. Stop this." Higgs voice was strained. She was holding back her anger and frustration.

"I apologise my lady, I am unable to offer you any beverages that are fit of you." The woman still would not look either of them in the eye. Before the situation could go further Heckapoo decided to intervene.

"Can someone explain what is going on here?" She looked towards the woman who wouldn't meet her gaze and she shook her head. Higgs let out a dark chuckle and decided to explain.

"Well H-Poo, like I was saying before. Sometimes all you can do is cut the past away and move on because if you can't live with what you've done and can't move on. You become her. Garnet Marie Higgs. My mother."

"I don't understand... You've always said you grew up in the orphanage?"

"I did Heckapoo because you see the woman before you sold me to save my father. He was sick and needed the medicine. She needed money and the creeps of these slums, as Marco called it, could always do with another child for their misdeeds. I was sold and worked for a while before being rescued by knights. I was taken to the orphanage but I ran away. To be back with my Mum and Dad. When I got here my father was already dead. Mum had been ripped off and sold fake medicine. My father died in more pain than he should have when the fake medicine took effect. I was sold for nothing, my mother lost everything and she broke. I decided to do something about it, the world who stole my father and family. I fought for the position of Squire, I worked hard and finally, as you know, became a distinguished Knight of Mewni. I returned here intending to take my mother to a better place, to show her how much I had done and everything I had accomplished but when she saw me.. she only saw Lady Higgs, Knight of the Kingdom. To her... I was a child she sold, dead to her. She can't look at me, she refuses to talk or acknowledge me because if she does she has to admit that she ruined everything for nothing. It's hard but we could have make it through, I could be there for her now. I never hated her, I hated the world that made her this way, it's why I was so hard on Marco. He came from a happy family and was given the thing I spent years reaching for. The past becomes a shackle that stops you moving onward." Higgs sighed loudly before reaching over and stroking her mother's hair. She recoiled at first from her daughter's touch but didn't move from the spot. Heckapoo could see how pained the situation made Higgs.

"What I mean Heckapoo.. is that you cannot become bound by the past, understand it and accept it, it makes you whole. My problem is that I need to get better, stronger, faster and be of use. I'm looking forward while carrying all this, because at the end of the day we all have our baggage. Just let Dox be yours. Carry him in your heart." Higgs lips curled into a smile as she tried to comfort her friend. She kissed her mother on the forehead before standing to leave.

"Is that it..?" Heckapoo questioned. She still felt lost inside. Like no matter how much it was explained away she was still broken. Was she just meant to carry all the pieces of her heart and hope it would be okay? To question her very existence as someone made to exist for a reason? And the question that bothered her the most.

"Is there nothing you can do?" She looked at Garnet Higgs and the back at Crystal. With a tear in her eye she shook her head. The pair bid the woman farewell before cutting open a portal back to the training room.

"She has already given up. No matter what we do, it's too late. Sometime people just break and that's it, nothing can change them back." As she finished speaking her mirror phone started to ring. She answered and was blasted with a stream of information before hanging up.

"Who was it?" Heckapoo asked, no longer wanting to dwell on the previous topic.

"That was Kelly... Janna woke up and she's okay?" Higgs explained while still not believing it. Heckapoo grabbed her hand and ran through the castle towards her friend. The rest of the Crescent were gathering for the first time in a long time or at least that's what should have happened.

 **/**

 **2 months later.**

The room was stiff with not a word being spoken as they all forced themselves to watch the footage for the third time. They all wanted to find a hole in the story, an glitch in the system. Anything to tell them that they weren't watching their best friend slaughter the innocent.

 _"Princess. Can you hear me? I'm not sure the live feed is responding well so I'll make sure that an automatic file gets sent when the recording ends." A faceless knight explained to the recording device. He raised the recorder and started his short stroll towards the village. The ground had already turned scarlet as the blood of all the dead ran from the village center._

 _"It's just like the others, regardless of race, age or sex all victims are killed, dragged to the center and bled out until the whole area is dyed red. Once again no witnesses to confirm but autopsy results from the doctor from Earth suggests that all the wounds match the same pattern and the same ability of the missing Knight." The knight had to stop the explanation to throw up. The doctor began to check on him as the other Knights were placing the bodies to the side in a more respectful manner._

 _"Sir Knight... Do you need a few minutes? I could take over?" The knight nodded so the Doctor took the recorder so the knight could get some space._

 _"Hello Star, I've got to say when you said you needed help I never expected it would be this? I thought I was here to help you find 'Him' but this... This is chasing a monster and not like the kind fellows who are aiding in our search... A true monster... Darkness incarnate. He gutted the children. He cut open the wombs of the pregnant and tortured anyone who remained. Someone enjoyed this and took pleasure in it. I've detected a pattern so we are going to try follow up. I'll ask Sir Knight if he can hold off sending in the footage until we confirm the theory, no point wasting your time but Princess. If this is him... He isn't the man any of us once knew anymore."_

 _The recording shows only static for a minute then returns to the doctor._

 _"Please... Please.. just tell her I love her." He coughed violently as he grabbed at where his blade had pierced his lung._

 _"You can tell her yourself." The knight pulled out one of the new, in the trial stage, healing potion and poured it into his wound. It started to heal but the pain forced the doctor to pass out._

 _"Now it's my responsibility and duty to make sure no guest of the Princess ends up in harm. I will honour that with my life." The Knight used his sword to pry off a few floor boards and slid the doctor under before replacing them as if he was never there._

 _"Princess... He's safe but he'll need help as soon as you can. It's been an absolute honour to serve you Star. Thank you for everything." The knight stood back up and walked to the door. Kicking it open he found the monster waiting for him. The monster was clad in the red blood of his friends as his hoodie dripped a trail behind him. His brown hair and eyes were hidden beneath the dark red. The knight stared into where his eyes should have been and watched as they opened and stared back with a hint of putrid green. A vile smile grew wide on his face as he tightened his hand and his black blade shifted from his ring._

 _"To use the gift of Lady Kelly to do such deeds, you hath truly fallen lower than low Sir Marco." The Knight drew his sword and pointed it at Marco. His blade shook in his hands as he pointed it as the very person who helped him master it just a few moons ago._

 _"I'll ask once more... Sir Marco.. are you being forced to do this? Is something or someone controlling you?" Marco merely laughed at his comment. The Knight went to tighten his stance but it was to no avail. Within seconds he had closed the gap and sliced through the Knights sword and his shoulder. The Knight fell to the floor screaming in agony. He grabbed at his knife and tried to retaliate but all that was awarded to him for his action were the removal of his arms. His legs followed suit and the knight was dragged just like all the others to the blood pile. Marco sat down in the blood laughing hysterically at the carnage he had caused. He let his blade return to a ring and spoke to the dead._

 _ **"I hope you find Dox on the other side. Tell him that he did this."**_

Back inside the meeting room the members of the Crescent were all pale and holding back their feelings. Whether they be rage, pain or utter sadness each member held back how they felt seeing the death of their friends.

"The Doctor?" Tom muttered from behind his hands. He was tired after chasing corpses for the last month straight, Tom had only just returned from the last massacre to find the message waiting for them.

"He was found and returned to Earth. He protested saying he owed the knights who saved his life but if he dies this changes from a civil war issue to a dimensional one." Heckapoo explained. Her voice was weak as her hands shook. This was her champion, one of her chosen few... Nothing more than a murderer.

"This is a joke." Janna stood up and went to leave when Kelly grabbed hold of her hand. Janna went to shake her off when she stopped to see the pain and fear in Kelly's eyes.

"Janna..."

"No. I'm sorry. Just because all of you have given up on him doesn't mean I have. Marco would never do this!" She felt her own tears burning her eyes as guilt weighed heavily on her heart.

"Janna... None of us have given up on him... But you need to face the truth.. That's Marco. If I hadn't seen that I would have felt the same but the blade ring... The weapon he's been using to kill all these people... I made it. I made it with my love for him... He's using a gift of my love to.. Kill people. I thought he had lost it but he must have lied.. " Kelly's voice cracked as she struggled to say the words that still felt like lies inside her heart.

"..A joke." Janna shook her off before blasting off the doors to the hall and leaving. She disappeared from view leaving the rest in pieces.

"Young Janna, it seems cannot quite handle the truth.." Glossaryck lamented.

"But is it the truth?" Higgs asked in response.

"I can no longer see the future, at least not in the way I used to. There are powers at work that are beyond me. But without a doubt Marco's magic print was found at the scene, meaning he had definitely been there. His blade gifted to only him was the weapon of murder and no matter how much we call to him or beg him to return he still runs from us. I can only conclude that Marco is the evil plaguing the land as we speak. If what Janna said about Darkco taking over his mind and body it's possible that it is no longer Marco who we are dealing with." Tom finished listening to Glossaryck before turning back to Star.

"What's the situation like out there?" Star's eyes were hollow, black rings decorating them as the insomnia had worsened each day the death toll rose.

"I don't know anymore... Like Janna... The people don't believe it can be Marco. Everyone believes in him so much that we're the bad guys here. The Magic School stands with Janna and won't assist us with the... The hunt for him. The nobles are in two minds. Half blame me for ever bringing him here but the other half are convinced it was our fault he's doing this. The monster royalty are in the same stance as the Magic School. Ludo won't acknowledge that Marco could do this and want us to find the real culprit. I'm going to have to show everyone this... But it'll invite panic into the people. No matter what I do now I'm the villain in my own kingdom." Star let her head drop to the table, the pain a brief escape from the numbness that haunted her.

"He's not Marco anymore.." Kelly stood still staring at the empty passage where Janna had left by.

"Kelly.."

"It's as Janna said. Marco wouldn't do this but Darkco would. There is no other explanation. Darkco stole his body and Marco's gone... But people wouldn't understand that, I barely understand that... So we keep calling him Marco. We all do."

"Kelly.."

"Star don't... You said it yourself before. Too many have died to hope that he'll pull through. It's over." Kelly held her hand over her ring as she disappeared into the Para-house.

"What are we going to do?"

"I don't know."

/

He dragged his tired body into the cave and slid along the jagged stones that pressed into him until he was comfortable against the wall. It was cold and damp, probably full of things that could kill him but he didn't care. He needed to sleep, every fibre of his being was aching as the long, endless days on the run were catching up to him. He could still smell the iron rich blood that had dried into his clothes and hated how he had grown used to the smell.

"Darkco?"

 **"Sleep. You need it."**

"Why are we even doing this?"

 **"You know why... And since when was this a 'we'?"**

"..." Marco stopped replying and drifted off to sleep. Once he was asleep his left hand reached over and pulled a blanket over him. Darkco sat in his room reaching to the screen to move the blanket before putting his head in his hands. Even he hadn't caused bloodshed like that. It was beyond evil and now his own sins seemed to weigh more on his shoulders as when he looked at the pile of corpses he saw the faces of everyone he killed. From the laser puppies to Dox, Darkco couldn't get their faces out of his mind. Marco had been handling it better than he ever thought he could but the last massacre was particularly heavy on him. That Knight had been a student of his, one he trained himself, cut down like nothing and left in pieces. Darkco left his chair and returned to his corner. He looked down at his hands, blood stained still. From the first day in this room his hands had been covered in the blood of those he killed. A fact he tried desperately to ignore but as each day on the run went by and the massacring grew worse he found himself trying to scratch off the dried blood. All he achieved was hurting himself more. He, like Marco, slid against the wall until he ended up on the floor. Ever since that night where he'd saved Janna he'd been able to sleep each night. He wasn't sure if it was a reward for his actions or some random occurrence but on days like this he didn't mind. He closed his eyes, ignoring the ghosts and fell into a silent sleep.

/

Morning brought him no solace. His body ached beyond measure as he crawled his way back to his wooden chair. He climbed into it and almost wanted to close his eyes and go back to sleep but knew they had to move. Staying in any place for too long would let the knights catch up and Darkco had grown to hate killing them with no cause.

 **"Marco."** His voice rang loudly in Marco's head as he shot up from the floor. He brushed himself down quickly as the insects from the cave had swarmed to him for his warmth. He scratched at a few bite marks on his arm and hoped that it wouldn't cause trouble for him later. Marco closed his eyes and allowed his mind to focus, he could hear dripping from deep within the cave and the light clicking of the insects legs against the hard stone floor. He then shot up thinking he'd been found as he heard the sound of hooves on stone. He raised his fists to see a family of deer looking back at him. They'd wandered close to the cave to lick at the walls for salt. He sat down with a smile and watched as they skipped away.

 **"We cannot stay for long."** Marco knew he was right but still hated agreeing with him. He pushed his hands against the ground and winced in pain as one of the rocks cut his palm. He reached into his bag and pulled out some bandages, hoping once again that he wouldn't leave this place with an infection.

Marco walked out into the glaring sunlight as it burst through the tree line above. The light seemed to shimmer through the leaves, making it's way to the forest floor. The breeze was light and felt nice against his skin, the mix of sunlight's warmth and the cool breeze was a blessing that allowed him to adjust and really take in his surrounding.

 **"Where are we?"** Darkco's voice was strained from just waking up, something Marco had only realised he did himself once he had started to listen to Darkco's voice more. The small quirks and habits that he missed coming from himself had become much more aware to him. He wondered if anyone else noticed them as clearly as he now did.

"Earth."

 **"Why? Is this not one of the first places they will look for us? They've been hunting us for weeks now, we can't afford to takes risks like this Marco."**

"Don't worry. They won't look here, not now. It's been too long. Anywhere in all of space is within our reach since we can use portals without detection. They wouldn't concentrate their efforts in any one place, especially since the last massacre happened in Mewni."

 **"Clever. As long as we avoid using magic we should remain undetected. So where on Earth are we? I don't know if you remember but Earth is a big place and from this little screen I can't quite make it out. I mean if you'd just let me read your mind again this would be easier."** Darkco's patent sarcasm filled his words. He had held back for conversations sake but it annoyed him to be unclear of what was happening.

"I told you already that it can't happened again. I won't let it. Last time you took control I had to kill someone who once called me friend. Forget it Darkco." He couldn't read Marco's mind anymore but Darkco could feel his hatred spike and knew to drop the topic.

 **"Message received. But seriously, where are we?"**

"Remember the geysers?"

 **"Old Youthful?"**

"Yeah. I figured somewhere we knew would work better and we'd be safe here. We can survive off the forest and I doubt Star would remember this place."

 **"I remember coming here with her and River... It feels like so many years ago now."**

"That's because it was. Now we need to decide what to do next?"

 **"Well since we're on Earth how about we head home? We can go see Mum and Dad and-"**

"-Darkco." Marco raised his voice as his clutched his hand tightly. He wanted nothing more than to go see his parents and brother but knew no matter what he couldn't. He knew that Darkco knew that too.

 **"Sorry. It's been so long. After everything that's happened... All I want is to go home."** Marco mirrored his sentiment as he started walking through the trees. He ignored his stomachs pains of hunger as he walked over large tree roots and fallen logs. He always loved the smell around this place. The earthy scent of the forest as it mixed with the sulfur smell that rose from the geysers. Him and Janna had come here once with his family too. It was when they were really little and she had hated the smell, calling it disgusting and wanting to go home. He laughed as he remembered the time they spent together.

 **"She'll be okay."** Darkco replied, knowing exactly what he'd be thinking.

"She'll be ashamed of what I've done."

 **"No. She'll know that there was more to it. She always did. I told you I got rid of her for a reason in the past. She was one of the only people who could have brought me back from my darkness. I doubt she will allow you to continue your descent into yours."** Marco found himself finding comfort in his words. He hated the times where he could no longer see Darkco as nothing but a monster.

"Why couldn't you have been my ally? Why do you have to be my enemy?"

 **"Not everyone can be your friend Marco. I hate you. More than you can ever know but I understand you and you understand me. We're both monsters now and we need to stick together if we want those who depend on us to survive."**

"Haha I guess you're right. Damn I hate you.."

 **"It's almost like our pet word at this point."**

"Freak."

 **"Loser."** The both started laughing in unison, their link and bond having grown in their time on the run. Darkco had recovered from his efforts to heal Janna and had begun to work to keep Marco alive on their crusade, knowing that his best chance at his own redemption was through his living counterpart. Marco, on the other hand, could sense his selfish and single minded desires. He knew Darkco was using him, a tool necessary to his own desire but still Marco could no longer reject him. He didn't have anyone else anymore. His connection to Kelly had been cut the day that Janna had been healed and the day he had to run away.

 **/**

"Jade?" She called our from under a pile of books. The blue haired boy struggled over the mess within the room until he peered down at the girl he loved. She was looking through a anthology of photos, one he hadn't seen before.

"What's up? And what do you have there?" Janna quickly rushed to hide the book but not before swiping out one photo in particular.

"I'm heading out, I think I have a clue as to where Marco may be. I'm not going to sit around and wait for all those idiots to realise there's no way this is Marco." Jade noticed she tried to hide the book but decided to leave it for now.

"Janna.. I'm sure they know this can't be him deep down.. after everything that's happened they must know he would never do this. Here, let me help you." Jade lifted Janna to her feet and she took the chance to hold him. Ever since waking up 2 months prior Jade had rarely left her side. He was so scared of losing her that he'd done everything in his power to protect her. He cooked for them both making sure she was eating properly, helped manage her work load so she stopped taking on way too much and stood by her when she had raised her voice against the others in their order. Janna thought to herself that if this was her in the past she'd make jokes about a possessive boyfriend but the her now understood, he wasn't trying to own her but stand beside her, to share in her burdens and never leave her alone again and it comforted her. She almost lost everything that made her who she was but she avoided it at the cost of their friend. She needed his support right now, her little bluebell.

"Thanks Jade." Janna whispered as she held onto him tightly. He wrapped his arms around her and wondered if she always felt this small and vulnerable.

"I could come with you?"

"I'd like that.."

"We could make it a date if it goes bad.. I'll pack a picnic!"

"With all my favourites?"

"I'll even go see your mother and ask for those special secret sandwiches she makes.."

"Careful.. I thought they'd never let you leave when you came round. _"Such a bright colourful young man!"_ "Janna chuckled remembering when Jade came to meet her parents. She hadn't been looking forward to it as part of her was worried they wouldn't like him, now her worry was that they loved him too much. Vu Jade Agape had played his part perfectly. He had introduced himself in a formal royal greeting, presenting both gifts and flowers to her parents. He'd been totally forthright with his origins which had caused Janna to have to do some exposition on their lives now as Jade's story of being an apostle of God had seemed far fetched even with all the magic, however, less than an hour later her parents were totally on board. Janna had pretended to be grossed out but the moment their backs were turned she couldn't stop smiling.

"Well I'm hoping that I'll be considered their son in the future so that's fine."

"The future? Jade.. they would have given you their blessing that day if they had the chance."

"Ha ha, I suppose that's true.."

"Seriously, thank you.. but I need to check out this lead alone."

"I know, What do you need me to do here?"

"Keep things under control, the magic school and Ludo are both standing with Marco. We can't let things get any worse so no one else can take sides. If too many join our cause it'll cause conflict."

"So we need to balance the board?"

"Exactly.. good boy!" She patted his head as a reward which made him both embarrassed and happy.

"Be safe.."

"Always.. I'll call immediately if something goes wrong."

"And I'll come running."

"I know." She stood on her tip toes and kissed his forehead before grabbing her coat and leaving the room. Jade held his fingers to the spot where she kissed, a warmth flooding him. She had used her magic to release the same endorphins that eating chocolate would. She wanted him to relax. He lifted his hands and started to make all her books float back to the spots they came from. When he was sure they were all returned to their original spots he was about to leave when he noticed the photo book under the desk. He called it to him before reading the title.

 _"Janna's Early Years."_ He was tempted to look but he placed it gently on the desk. He knew she'd show him when she was ready. Jade turned the lights off before closing the door, ready to do whatever it took to meet her expectations.

 **/**

Elsewhere in Mewni the Princess of the Butterfly Kingdom was attempting to cheer up her friend. Star was trying to find the right words to console Kelly but no matter what she thought of it just didn't feel like enough, which cause the pair to just be standing in silence looking out onto the kingdom. The morning sun's rays of light bounced across the buildings making it seem like the buildings themselves were shinning.

"Why.." Kelly spoke softly.

"Why what?" Star asked hesitantly.

"Why is the sun still shinning? Why is the sky still clear..? Why doesn't the world know how it should be feeling? Nothing is right anymore.. so why does it still shine?" Star sighed. She wanted to believe in Marco as much as Janna did but her obligations were stopping her. It was her people being slaughtered, her extended family she was having to piece back together in order to bury their bodies and it was she who had to apologise to their families that not only her knight but her best friend was the one doing it. Kelly had stayed strong, she had initially rejected the truth about what happened on the day Janna's memories returned but it was undeniable. Janna confirmed that Darkco was back and had the power to take over Marco's body.. then Marco stood, in a pool of blood and carnage before fleeing the scene. Tom had tried to stop him and had ended up in critical condition because of it. Whatever happened, the truth that Marco had been identified at each crime scene. His personal, one of a kind, weapon was the murder weapon and he was doing his best to get away from them. Kelly had been crushed, first by the fact that Marco hadn't told her Darkco was back.. then by the fact it was the weapon she made being used to end all these innocent lives and finally by the fact he was blaming Dox for his sins. Kelly had become a wreck and was worrying Star so much.

"Kells.. I don't know.. the universe doesn't work the way we want it to.." Star said trying to console her but all that got was Kelly's rage.

"I know that Star. I know that. I also know that it doesn't change anything. He's still out there."

"We're doing everything we can to find him.."

"Are we? I should be out there finding him.. if it was me then maybe.. maybe I could bring him back.. we could beat Darkco together.. yes.. that's it.. he needs me.." Kelly span around to leave when Star cast a quick sleeping spell with her wand. She caught Kelly and used her key to open up the Parahouse. Marco hadn't been home since before that day and Kelly avoided coming here since it reminded her that he wasn't here. Star had been doing her best to keep Kelly away from Marco, she feared that if, in his current state, she couldn't get through to him then she'd be the next body on the floor and any chance of saving him would be gone.

Star laid her down on the bed gently before brushing some strands of hair from her face. She could see the red and black stained marks under her eyes from lack of sleep and non-stop tears. It hurt Star to see one of her bravest and most strong friends reduced to this but more so it hurt her to know that the man they both loved was out there, unable to return and doing the very thing he had always despised, bulling the weak. Star had reached a point where she could no longer keep holding Kelly back so was preparing to keep her out of the fight, safe and sound. She cast an eternal sleep charm on her friend which could only be removed by herself or the cliché of true loves kiss. She hoped it would be the latter that brought her back. Star left the key to the house on the side and closed the door behind her. It may not be the most effective action but she would protect all her friends no matter the cost.

"We need to talk." Star turned to see Jade sitting on the wall behind her. He'd watched the whole ordeal but personally agreed it was for the best.

"I agree." Star gestured for him to follow and the pair went to meet with those who remained at the castle.

 **/**

Marco waited patiently. His vision was focused and unrelenting, hiding his presence be raised the spear in his right hand. He breathed the word sorry as he threw it with all his might ending the life of a stray deer. He'd been careful to pick a male that didn't belong in the herd. It still bothered Marco to kill but he was on the verge of starving so couldn't choose his options from a wide pool of choices. Marco rushed close and snapped it's neck, ensuring that it's pain was kept to a minimal.

He lifted the deer and brought it back to the cave. He'd used some nearby sticks to make a rack to hold it and started to bleed the animal.

 **"I don't know how to do that... Why do you?"** Marco smiled as Darkco's question reminded him of a simpler time.

"Dox taught me."

 **"What exactly was his plan? To prepare you for every single conceivable situation out there?"**

"Ha ha.. No.. But he made sure that we could survive. No matter what happened his purpose was to make sure I could live."

 **"What was it like? Being with him I mean?"** Marco thought back through all their time together.

"At first.. I really didn't like him. He came kicking into my life, literally, saving us from the Sandwich beast. He was annoying and clearly suspicious... Like sometimes I wonder what his plan was on that first encounter, how would it have gone if it went right?" Darkco got more comfortable in his chair as he began to listen to Marco's words. Just as how Marco was slowing turning to darkness, Darkco had light bleeding into him. With each act Marco took towards evil Darkco was forced to face his sins, the guilt was overwhelming as he remembered all he did. He was still himself, as Marco was too but it felt like the lines between them were blurring. Sometimes he wondered what Fate and the red headed fool were even doing. If they were watching the boy as he was why weren't they helping him.

"After Kelly forced him to admit what his mission was our relationship changed. He wasn't just my hero but my sacrifice as well. I always planned to save him, to never let him go and do this crazy thing but at the same time I saw his warm smile he'd make at the thought of fulfilling his destiny and I'd know that I couldn't change anything.." Marco paused to picture their time together, each and every moment another precious memory.

The two keep taking about Dox as Marco decided to forage the local area. He snuck into the camp site nearby to borrow some utensils and condiments. He left some money just in case and hoped they wouldn't mind. He used his knowledge from both living with Dox and what his father taught him as a boy to pick some mushrooms and natural herbs to season the food some more.

"We were a family.." Marco reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded picture. He opened it up to reveal the same photo that Dox had given Kelly on her birthday. The three of them messing around and Marco with a face full of pie.  
"We lived together, trained together, fought together and just truly fell in love with each other and I don't just mean me and Kelly. Dox was like an older brother to me. Someone to guide me and teach me the things that a parent couldn't. He'd help me with whatever I wanted, even though he wouldn't be around to see it. You should have seen how proud he looked when me and Kelly told him what we wanted to do in the future. He loved the idea of the Magic Hospital. A bridge between two worlds and life and death. I'm alive only because of him. If he never came back I would have lost my life to you, I would never have lived to know the love I feel for Kelly right now. Every life I save is another added to the lives he saved, if I can just make it through this... And do what I need to do then I can create a path for thousands if not millions of lives to be saved. Each, i hope, will one day know the name Dox Alessandro Par, The Index of Knowledge. My Hero." Darkco was silent as he finished his conversation. Unknown to Marco, as he had been talking his memories begun to show to Darkco but instead of just witnessing it he lived it. Darkco knew each and every day they spent together, he lived them all inside of Marco's memories and inside he felt his ruined heart quiver.

 **"He was a good man. I'm not going to apologise for what I did. He stood in my way and I had no choice but to end his life."** Darkco knew this would probably be the worst response but lying to Marco had begun to feel wrong to him.

"He was a good man, you got that right. I will never forgive you, Marco, for killing him but I understand why you did what you did." Darkco remained silent. He had never called him Marco before. It was always Darkco or some insult, somehow hearing his name again after so long felt strange. He felt like some part of him had given up on being Marco of the Dark Dimension and just became Darkco, the Dark Marco instead. He chuckled to himself as he realised how stupid it sounded but it made him feel something nonetheless.

Marco and Darkco both knew that their prolonged talks and interactions were changing them. They no longer personified black and white, good and evil, the polar opposites and instead were becoming the shade of grey. A true balance. Neither knew what this would bring to them except pain and hurt but they had grown to rely on the others company. Marco was being plagued by nightmares of the people killed and Darkco would try to comfort him, albeit he'd do it by annoying Marco until he got so angry that he'd forget what he was dreaming about but he'd grown to appreciate the voice in his head.

 **"You know Marco... I can restore the link between you and Kelly?"**

"I do know that yes.."

 **"But you won't allow it?"**

"If the link is restored she can come to where we are. She doesn't understand that the things we've done were what we had to do. No one does. I Love her too much to allow her join us. If she knew, if she did happen to understand... I'm scared she would actually follow me into the dark."

 **"Then make me a deal?"**

"You know.. I remember being told not to make deals with the devil?"

 **"Funny. But seriously, make me a deal."**

"What's your terms?"

 **"If we see any of your friends, give them a chance to help you."**

"We'll see." With that the conversation was over, the two returned to silence and started to process the things that they were feeling. Life had been difficult of late after all. Marco stood up and headed back towards the camping grounds. He was sure there was something there that he forgot.

/

Janna pulled up at the large gates and was waved in. She drove on through before pulling up and exiting her car. Something she had invested some time in while her and Heckapoo had been on their many adventures. The pair had decided to try and fix up an old car from a scrap pile she had found. Heckapoo was reluctant at first but Janna had persuaded her to get involved. She'd moved it back to earth recently in order to use it when she was at home. She took a big breath in and remembered how much she hated the way this place smelt.

"Seriously.. What did he ever like about this place?" She looked up a sign that laid out the whole area. Some civil war re-enactments were talking place again. Too many people, he'd avoid that. Old Youthful itself was a tourist trap for reasons that escaped her so he'd avoid that too. The only place left was the forest and camping area. He knew his way around it and could probably hunt around there too. He was skilled after all. Janna mapped out the shortest route to the campsite and went to the boot of her car. In the back were a few Janna essentials from a Molotov to a encyclopaedia of weird phenomenon. The thing Janna was reaching for was a trusty broom stick. She'd had it for years, with the hopes that one day when she became a witch she could use it. Her trip down memory lane had reminded her of it and she'd fetched it from her attic. She whispered a spell into its spine and smiled as it started to float and circle around her enthusiastically. Janna sat down on it and whistled for her broom to take her into the air. The witch glided across the tree tops as she was checking on the supplies she brought with her in terms of throw-able potions. She had learnt her lesson after having her magic taken from her and worked to never be that weak again.

The many tourists and campers below reported later that day to the Ranger's office that they witnessed a witch take to the skies and watched as trails of different coloured smoke came from the potions she was holding. It started a new paranormal rumour of the Witch of the Wood.

Janna lent down and ran her hands across the leaves at the top of the tree. She was still in amazement of everything that had happened over the last few years. Less than half a decade ago she was just your not average weird kid who somehow dodged all trouble while causing all kinds of mayhem. Now she was an all powerful witch trying to prove her friend wasn't a mass murderer while flying to meet him on an enchanted broomstick. She spotted the camp site coming up so landed with a light thud. She started to look around, a strange feeling of dread growing inside her. She checked the nearby tents and popular spots but found no sign of Marco. She was about to move on when she noticed a note placed carefully by a box of ingredients. She picked it up and read his writing "Sorry I had to borrow these, hope the money covers it." Even on the run he would leave a note. She looked around and went to leave to search for him when it finally dawned on her what was wrong with the camping grounds. Janna span around and realised that not one single person was around. A popular camping site with loads of tents and food still cooking on the grill yet not one person was around. Janna's blood turned cold as she ran through the woods, following the tracks of people moving most recently. She tumbled over her dress, rolling into a clearing where a dozen eyes looked at her with both a mix of hope and panic. She jumped up quickly enough to avoid a slash from his black blade as he groaned in annoyance. She rose to her feet and quickly flicked her wrist at the campers. Their restraints came loose and they all began to rise.

"Run, as quickly as you can!" She screamed after them as she managed to dodge another of his strikes. Janna had watched him train from the very first session. She could follow him easily and used her skills to keep him distracted long enough for the captives to escape.

"Marco stop. Please."

 _ **"Janna.. I can't do that. I need to do this."**_ He looked up at her with a big smile across his face. He pulled down his hood revealing his blood stained face. He hadn't even bothered to clean the blood from his last victims off of his face. She looked into his eyes, hoping to see her childhood friend and instead saw vacant brown eyes, with a tint of green looking back at her coldly.

"We can help you. Whatever's happened to you we can help! Please just trust us. Trust me. I don't know why you're doing but we can help you stop."

 _ **"Stop? Why would I want to stop?"**_

"What?" Janna whispered in shock.

 _ **"Why would I stop having all this fun!? All these weak, pathetic people just ready for the slaughter! Do you not see the beauty of my art! I'm painting the world red from Mewni to Earth to beyond. Dox changed my life and now I'm thanking him the only way that makes sense... By making him watch from the beyond as his precious student kills in his name!"**_ He started to laugh sadistically and wildly as he reminisced about all the times he felt their bones crunch from the weight of his strike or the way their flesh slid apart from the slash of his blade.

"This isn't you.. Marco.. Please.. You have to fight him.. You have to fight Darkco." Janna watched his face as she tried to reach past the control and reach the friend she knew and loved. However, instead of anything she expected all she saw was confusion.

 _ **"Darkco? Who is Darkco? I'm Marco Diaz. I don't know what game you're planning but it ends now."**_ He lunged for her again but she easily blocked and parried his hits. Too easily she found herself thinking as she waited for his next move. He seemed sluggish to her, like he was acting out a part as oppose to fighting her for real. The surprise attack she was expecting never seemed to come and Janna was able to fight off his reckless pursuit more easily than she could have ever imagined.

 _ **"Stay still you stupid girl!"**_ He groaned in frustration. Janna's confusion grew more as the moves started to resemble Marco's more and more.

"...Who are you?"

 _ **"I am Marco Diaz."**_ Janna looked into his eyes as they flared green once more and suddenly something made sense to her. She kicked up some dirt from the ground into his eyes before whistling for her broom and jumping on it. She looked back to see him bring forth his magic wings. A move she had planned for exactly. She dodged his blasts of magic before falling to the ground. He watched from above as she and her broom tumbled straight into a geyser hole and disappeared into nothing. He channelled his magic and blast flames all the way down to the bottom only to have the geyser release and blast scalding hot water into the air. He smiled as he figured she must have either bit the dust from the flames or the scalding water. He turned and disappeared from the Earth dimension, planning his next move.

Jade had just left a meeting with the others when his phone pinged and he saw her SOS signal. Jade tore open a portal before rushing to the spot where her signal was coming from. He looked down into the darkness, worried that the worst must have happened.

"JANNA!" He called down desperately.

"Shut up you fool and help me out!" She called back. He materialised his wings and flew down into the hole. His magic seemed to light up the hole as he flew deeper until she called out to him. He looked at a hole in the wall in shock as she sat there eating some sandwiches. Quickly grabbing her, Jade flew the pair out of the hole to avoid the geyser blast that followed on straight afterward.

"What happened?"

"I found him and he attacked me. I tried to fight but his magic power kept growing, like he wasn't holding back the longer we fought. I decided to pause that fight for the time being and pretended to fall down that hole to my death. I hid in the big crack in the wall using my cloak as cover until you came to my rescue. I lost my favourite broom down there." Janna groaned in regret. Jade looked at her sternly.

"He tried to kill you.."

"About that... I need you to remember the day this started. What happened the day of the first killing?"

* * *

/

 **A/N: Honestly can't believe it's been almost a year since I last updated this fanfic. Have to apologise for that to those that enjoy it. Once again, Hope you all had a fantastic holiday and if you enjoy this chapter let me know in the reviews. I will definitely get another chapter out soon.**

 **P.S. I am aware of the irony of the chapters title...**


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